The Bodyguard
by FireStallion
Summary: While in Afghanistan testing his new weapon, Tony is assigned a bodyguard with whom he has had past relations. Now they must both put their past behind them if they want to get out alive. Tony/OC EDIT: Content is being improved and re-uploaded. Technically is complete though. Re-uploaded through ch. 5. On hiatus until December. Read profile for more info.
1. Chapter 1

**EDIT: This is a re-uploaded version of chapter one. The story isn't going to change, it's just going to be improved with, what I hope is, better writing and reflect some of the things that were brought up in my recent story BG: How They Met. It's not necessary to read that story to enjoy this one since it was written after this story, but it goes into a lot more detail than this story ever will go into. On to the story! And don't forget to leave me reviews. They always make my day better :)**

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**Chapter 1**

After rubbing his eyes for what seemed like the hundredth time Colonel Rhodes groaned again.

"How did I ever let you talk me into this?"

"I don't know," Tony responded as he finished his orange juice. It hadn't been very hard to get his friend drunk. After getting a little sake in him it went downhill, and Tony enjoyed every minute of it. Rhodey, on the other hand, was probably thinking of different ways to kill him.

Rhodey looked like he was trying to glare at Tony for a moment, but through his obvious hangover it looked more like he was trying to go to sleep, or not throw up.

"You know you had fun," Tony said in response to the glare.

"_That_ was not fun, Tony. _That_ was wasting time. I was hoping to acquaint you with your bodyguard before we landed, but it doesn't look like-"

"Wait a minute," he interrupted, "What do you mean 'bodyguard'? Since when was that decided? You know I hate bodyguards."

"Do not whine at me," Rhodey groaned with a wave of his hand. "It was a last minute decision I had planned on discussing with you before you decided on throwing a party instead. It won't be that bad Tony. You'll find her quite capable of keeping you out of trouble."

"Her? You hired a woman?" he asked with more surprise.

"You're whining again," Rhodey said flatly before continuing, "I didn't hire anyone. This was not my decision. I was not part of the selection process, but I've read her résumé. She is more than qualified for the job." He pulled out a piece of paper from a file and slid it across the counter.

After quickly scanning it Tony handed it back satisfied and said, "Fine, I guess I can bear it."

This wasn't the first time he had a female body guard. That wasn't what upset him. It was the thought of it being the same woman from a year ago.

He had gone over to Japan to make final arrangements with a company that he was buying out. There were rumors of a possible attack on the billionaire, so a bodyguard was hired as a precaution. JC Wilcox was her name, and from her outward appearance, it was hard to believe she was a bodyguard. During the time there Tony had gotten drunk, as usual, and had done something stupid. Well, technically two stupid things, depending on the way one looked at it. After that, she treated him with disdain, but when the threat was carried out—or at least attempted —she protected him, saved his life.

They never spoke again after the incident, but he knew that if they ever met again, she would no doubt carry out her revenge. He remembered all too clearly that she threatened to kill him, if she ever saw him again. Thankfully she was not assigned here. He would have felt a bit more at ease if he had seen a picture of the woman, but he didn't think it mattered too much. This woman's name was Lieutenant J. Alwin; no possible relation to JC, and no record of ever having been in Japan during his attack. He didn't mind one bit. With that out of the way he could focus on the most important thing today. Go in, make a good impression, make the sale, and get out.

The door of the plane opened and Tony stepped out into the blazing heat in a three piece suit complete with Kevlar without breaking a sweat.

"Tony Stark, it's a pleasure to meet you. We're looking forward to your presentation," one of the generals greeted.

"The pleasure is mine, General," he said and shook hands with the Peacekeepers.

"Well, enough of the pleasantries. Lieutenant Alwin will be here shortly. There was word of a storm moving in, so she went to scout the area."

Moments later a helicopter zoomed past them and pulled up for a sharp landing not far from their spot on the tarmac.

"Speak of the devil. That would be Alwin," the general said and walked over to speak to her.

Tony turned to Rhodey and whispered, "This lieutenant could be interesting, if she fights even half as good as she flies."

"I told you she was good."

He watched as the lieutenant stepped out of the aircraft and saluted the general. After what looked like her probably giving her report she removed her helmet and followed the general.

It was then that a terrible realization sunk in. Average height, shoulder length dirty blonde hair tied back, a sweet angelic face that appeared to be incapable of doing harm. And those eyes, those unmistakable blue eyes that had once seemed so innocent before, he knew would only be cold and calculating or burning with anger at him. Neither were good for him.

"Rhodey, get me out of here. Start the engines back up and get me away from here, now."

"Tony-"

"Don't ask questions. Just hide me before she sees me!" he said through gritted teeth.

"Pull yourself together. What's the problem?"

"You don't understand," he said turning to face him. "If she sees me, she will kill me!" Her threat was at the forefront of his mind. It wasn't just one of those idle phrases where you didn't actually intend to kill a person. She had held a knife to his throat and said, very clearly, if she ever saw him again, she would kill him. Oh, she probably wouldn't do it right there in front of everyone right then. She might wait until they were in the humvee. Maybe she'd even set something up while she was investigating that so-called storm. He didn't put anything past her.

"Mr. Stark, are you ready?" a pleasant voice interrupted.

He slowly turned to see the lieutenant looking at him with an innocent look, whereas Tony, who had gone a shade paler, felt like he was staring at the Grim Reaper. He saw neither anger nor coldness in her eyes as he had expected. Instead, there was feign innocence on the verge of mischief. He wasn't sure which was worse: mischief or anger.

"Mr. Stark, may I introduce-"

"That's not necessary, sir," she interrupted. "We've met before. I was his guard in Japan last year."

Tony squirmed ever so slightly at the mention of Japan. It was obvious she had not forgotten from the coy smile she wore. That affirmed it. Mischief was definitely worse. That could only be a precursor to some plan of revenge.

"_Lieutenant_ Alwin? You never mentioned the military, and last year you were Wilcox," Tony said, keeping as much of his composure as he could.

"It wasn't exactly necessary information that ever came up in conversation, and I am allowed to change my name. If you are ready to go, Mr. Stark, we should get under way. General," she said saluting her superior.

He did the same replying, "Dismissed."

Lieutenant Alwin, now known as JC, motioned for them to follow her to the waiting convoy while she went back to her chopper to remove her flight suit. He watched her for a moment as she seemed to be conversing with someone in the helicopter. She looked vaguely unamused and even a little irritated. He could only assume the conversation was about him, and the topic was unsavory. There was a moment where she smiled wickedly which made Tony's blood chill. Just one more confirmation that she had horrible things planned.

The ride out to the test site was silent. This annoyed Tony; awkward silences always annoyed him. He looked over at JC noticing she was not wearing the customary military fatigues. Compared to the others she was dressed normally with khaki cargo pants and a dark brown poncho that he was sure was hiding plenty of weaponry. Although, he was surprised to see nothing else on her. As a soldier, he didn't think that she would have any reason to hide her weapons. It wasn't like Japan where she had to pretend to be normal. He doubted anyone would think she was anyway.

"Since when do you travel so unarmed?" he asked trying to break the silence.

"Who said I was unarmed?" she replied without looking at him.

"I don't see a single gun with you."

In response she pulled aside the top fold of the poncho to reveal an array of weaponry he was accustomed to seeing on her person. She wore a vest adorned with throwing knives he had seen before, and still scared the hell out of him. Two guns sat in shoulder holsters while several extra clips were attached to a strap slung across her body. For her, this was traveling light. "There's also an M-16 under the seat. I just didn't feel like holding it," she said with a smirk.

That was more like it. All that was missing now was her Mary Poppins backpack that had an endless amount of toys. He doubted there were anymore hiding places left, which meant he probably wouldn't see it this time.

"Are you sure knives were the best choice? I don't think you'll be getting close enough to use them, if you have to."

She turned and glared at him as if deeply insulted. "I don't need to be too close. You know that," she said menacingly.

She was right about that. She had somehow managed to hit a man in the neck that was almost two stories away in a cramped stairwell. Tony cringed at the memory. There weren't many things that made him cringe, but watching the things she had done…there were just no words to properly describe what it had done to him, what it would have done to any normal person. Only an incredibly cruel, soulless person could be unaffected by what had transpired that day.

"So how did you get pulled into this? Japan wasn't on the record I saw, so I'm doubting it was because of prior dealings," he asked changing the subject. That was something else he had found odd. He had seen lists of several employers and jobs she'd had within the past five years. He didn't remember seeing Takeshi, her employer in Japan, on the list anywhere. He thought of asking her about it, but decided against it. The less he brought up that day, the longer his life might last.

"One of the generals wanted to have a personal guard along in the convoy. You're not exactly a popular person around here. Personally, I thought you were behind this. I'll admit, I had doubts about that considering what happened in the past," she explained.

"I swear I had nothing to do with this. I didn't even know about it until I landed," he said, holding his hands up defensively.

"As I said, I had my doubts. Why would you want to bring me on after being such an _ass_ last time we met? You know, you're lucky I didn't kill you right then and there," she spat. She was right, because she nearly had.

"I thought we settled this a long time ago," he said trying to avoid a fight. This is what he had feared would happen. The look in her eye had been warning enough that this moment was inevitable. So much for prolonging his life.

"It was never 'settled'. You don't just settle things like that."

"What do you want? An apology? I already gave that to you," he said, irritation now slipping through. Granted, she had been incapacitated when he'd said it, but he'd still said it. Didn't that count for something?

"It would have been nice if it was sincere," she mumbled under her breath.

"Women," he grumbled.

"Men."

From then on they rode in silence.

* * *

Perfect. The demo had gone as planned leaving the generals thoroughly impressed.

The only unhappy person was JC, and Tony didn't have to guess why. They never planned on seeing each other again under any circumstances after Japan, and here they were, forced upon each other again. Last time, she had been forced on him. This time, it felt more like he had been forced on her.

Once again they were enveloped in a silence that Tony had to break.

"I feel like I'm being driven to a court martial. This is crazy. What did I do?"

As soon as the words were said he was sure he would regret the last statement.

"Do you mean today or shall we review the past year?" JC said disdainfully.

"What is your problem? I apologized already for what happened. What more do you want from me?"

"It would be nice if you actually meant it, Stark. You're like a five year old that apologizes just to get out of time-out instead of being sorry for what they did," she said, her tone raising a notch.

"You're blowing this slightly out of proportion. It was an accident."

"An accident?" she gasped. "An accident is bumping into a table and breaking a glass. Getting purposefully drunk and trying to seduce me is not an accident!"

All of a sudden the humvee in front of them was blown apart.

"Contact left!" the driver yelled as she grabbed her weapon and stepped out. In the next instant she was on the ground unmoving.

JC already had Stark pinned to the floor board grabbing her own gun from under the seat. She was now in the moment. In those few seconds she transformed from spiteful woman to bodyguard; of course, you wouldn't want to tangle with either, as Tony had learned.

Tony tried to stay calm. Freaking out wasn't going to get him anywhere. He'd lost control of himself in Japan, and that had only managed to get him in trouble. Not this time. He wasn't going to screw up this time. This time he would completely trust JC. He knew that she knew what she was doing. She would get him out alive and safe, if he would just let her.

Their other escort ran out, but his fate was just as fast as other. JC sat there hovering over Tony obviously trying to figure out what to do next. That decision was quickly made when a spray of bullets went through the door.

"Out!" she yelled.

"Are you nuts?" he exclaimed. Part of him wanted more than anything to trust her. However, she had a tendency for doing things that were…well, nuts. It was when she said things like 'get-out-of-the-vehicle-like-those-other-guys-that-just-died' was when it got really hard to do exactly what she said.

"We're no safer in here than out there. Get out!" she yelled, pushing him out the door. She grabbed him by the collar and dragged him behind several large rocks shooting at anyone she saw along the way. She went for a fresh clip and winced. She had been grazed in the shoulder when the humvee door was turned into Swiss cheese.

"Are you okay?" Tony asked noticing the injury.

"It's nothing. It's just a flesh wound," she huffed.

Tony watched her as she looked around. The look on her face was one of calculation. One possible question going through her mind was the likelihood of them escaping, if back up didn't arrive. A moment later it was obvious her calculations were done, because she removed her poncho and removed the spare ammo and guns in their holsters and threw them back at the humvee.

"What are you doing? Have you lost your mind?" he exclaimed.

_Trust her_, the little voice in his head was saying.

_Yeah, right. Trust the woman that wants to kill you and is now throwing away all her means of defending us? No way_, he thought back.

"They're getting closer. If we get captured with these weapons, they'll kill us on sight," she explained as she removed the vest of knives and discarded it with everything else. All she had left was a Kevlar vest and the M-16 for all the good it would do.

"What, you're going to let us get captured?!" he demanded with wide eyes. She'd pulled a similar stunt before, let herself get caught before subduing the enemy. But she'd had her knives that time. Knives which were now probably beneath their destroyed vehicle.

"Shut up and stay down," she ordered as she popped up and shot off several more rounds. Now he was worried. What if this was Japan all over again? What if it was even worse? He didn't want to think like that now, couldn't afford to. He had to trust her, though that was becoming harder with her dwindled supply of weapons.

"Give me your phone. I might be able to contact base for back up," she demanded as she held out her hand for the phone.

As he did so, a mortar landed two feet from them. Stark saw the logo and knew immediately what it was.

"Move!" she screamed, tackling him as the mortar exploded, sending them flying.

Then he was on the ground, dazed from the impact.

Tony couldn't move. There was too much pain from the blast and body slam he had received. The pain became sharper around his chest as he tried to move. He tried to move to see what was wrong, but someone was already hovering over him.

"Stark, are you all right?" a distant female voice asked. He groaned in response, not able to make intelligible words at the moment. "Tony, talk to me."

"Pe…pper?" he groaned. It couldn't have been Pepper. Could it? Her hands were on him pressing into his chest. Why was she doing that? He was wearing Kevlar. He shouldn't be injured that badly.

"Keep talking, Tony," she urged. The image of the woman grew fuzzier until he could no longer see. His mind drifted. He wasn't unconscious yet, but he was nearly there. He heard her yell, "Tony!"

There was a light pressure on his neck and a wisp of hair brushed his cheek. She must have been checking his vital signs. Was he dying? He wasn't sure yet. If the pain he felt in his chest was any indication of his mortality, it would be safe to say he was in danger of death.

There was yelling that seemed far away. He didn't understand a word of it. Whether it was because he was so out of it or the fact it was in another language he wasn't positive of. The person responded back in the same garbled sounds, and he felt himself being hauled away. From there he could only guess what would happen as he fell completely into unconsciousness.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Here is the updated version of chapter two. Enjoy and don't forget to leave a review :)**

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**Chapter 2**

Pain. That was all he could feel as he came back from unconsciousness. Pain and cold. He breathed in slowly and felt something blocking that air.

He felt around his nostril for the obstruction and found something that felt like a plastic tube. He grabbed the tube and began to pull, feeling it move up his throat in an uncomfortable manner. When it was finally removed he sucked in air greedily and immediately felt how dry his throat was.

He gazed around the room and spotted a cup of water on a stand near the bed he was laying on. As he tried moving his frozen joints he caught a glimpse of an older man standing not far away from him shaving. Shaving? It seemed odd to him in general, if he was where he thought he was, that this man seemed so calm and just went about doing such a mundane task as shaving to look presentable. Ignoring the man for the moment, he reached for the cup nearly grasping for it, but it fell from his feeble, rigid grip. He could see a canteen and tried to reach for it when something pulled on him, making him stop.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you," the older man warned.

He turned back to see what was stopping him to see a car battery with thick cables attached to it. Following the cables, he found they were attached to something round and hard on his chest. He tore at the bandages on his chest, desperate to find what was on him. What he found horrified him. A device covered in wires and screws was _inside_ him.

He looked back to the battery to verify what he saw. On the other side of the battery more cables reached out to none other than Lieutenant JC Alwin. More than that, she had a similar tube in her nose and another thicker tube in her mouth that connected to more machinery that looked almost as old as Tony. That was when the gravity of the situation sunk in. Something worse had happened.

"What the hell did you do to us?" he asked as he stared at the device in a mirror. After being filled in on the events prior to finding himself in his dark cave of a prison, Tony wanted to know why they were still alive.

"What I did?" the old man asked with a chuckle. "What I did was to save your lives. I removed as much of the shrapnel I could, but there's a lot left, and it's heading toward your atria septum. Want to see?" the older man said removing a small jar from his pocket. "A souvenir. Take a look," he said tossing it to him. "I've seen many wounds like that in my village. We call them the walking dead, because it takes about a week for the barbs to reach the vital organs."

After turning it a few times in the light he could tell that it was definitely from his own weapons. He remembered when they were designed. He remembered when he had approved that design and put it into production. His stomach churned. Coming out of his thoughts he turned his attention to more important matters.

"What is this?" he asked tapping the device.

"That is an electromagnet powered by a car battery, and it's keeping the shrapnel from entering your heart."

"What about JC?" he asked.

"Her lung cavity was damaged badly by the same barbs. She's lucky she wasn't dead when she came in here. None of the barbs hit her spine or central nervous system as far as I could see, which is a small miracle. Even if she wakes up soon, she won't be able to breathe on her own for some time. She's lucky they had the ventilator, antiquated as it is. I have to admit, even with what I did, I'm doubtful she will survive for very long," he said glumly.

"What are her chances?" Tony asked looking for some kind of hope.

"If she were in a proper hospital, she might actually be able to recover. In here it'll be a miracle if she lasts another day."

"She's had worse odds. The last time I saw her she was in a coma," he said, staring at her unconscious body. Seeing her like this was like Japan all over again. He had seen her lying in that hospital bed, tubes inside her the same way as now. The only difference between now and then was that they were in a dirty cave instead of that hospital. He didn't see many other differences, not even the circumstances that put her here.

"We were attacked in Japan by a group of radicals. JC was my bodyguard then, too. I had never seen fighting like that before outside of a movie. She was shot three times, stabbed, and thrown down a flight of stairs. She lost consciousness on the way to the hospital. Her coma was so severe she was never expected to come out of it, even if she managed to survive her other injuries. But she made a full recovery. She's a fighter. She'll get through this," he said as he stared up defiantly at the doctor.

"I know you want to look on the bright side, Stark, but the bleak reality is that-"

He was cut off by a sudden banging on the door and someone yelling at them in a foreign language.

The older man rushed over to Stark saying, "Do as I do." He put his hands over his head in the classic surrender pose. Tony did the same as a heavy set man walked into the room with several guards.

"They have my guns. How did they get my guns?" Tony questioned as he noticed the designs of their weaponry. There was no mistake. He could even see a tiny logo on the side of one of the scopes. It made his stomach lurch even worse than before.

"Did you not hear me? Do as I do!"

The heavier man began spouting off in a foreign language in what looked like some form of greeting.

This was clarified with the stranger's translation. "He says, 'Welcome, Tony Stark, the most famous mass murderer in the history of America. He's honored.'"

He went on about something else.

Again a translation was provided. "He wants you to build the Jericho missile for him. This one," he said showing Tony a picture of the missile.

"I refuse," he said flatly. They had already stolen God knew how many of his weapons. He wasn't about to just give them one more.

This enraged the man. He began spouting orders to the guards sending them forward to grab Tony, but they were stopped by the stranger.

He began spouting off in the same language Tony did not understand. As he did so, he pointed from Tony, to JC, and then to the battery. Tony could only guess what he meant.

More orders were shouted at the older man, and then everyone left.

"What was that about?" Tony asked relaxing his arms.

"You have two hours to change your mind. Otherwise, they will force me to find a way to disconnect her from the battery and keep you alive."

"What are you saying?"

"There was only one battery but two of you, so I had to figure a way to share. The only way was to make a circuit between the two of you."

"Basically what you're trying to tell me is that if either of us breaks the chain, both magnets will shut down? How do they expect you to fix that, if I refuse?" he demanded.

"There is a way, but it would be better if I not tell you. You have enough on your mind for the moment. I suggest you use your time wisely."

Neither of the current options presented to Tony were very appealing. On the one hand, he could refuse and have JC killed. If he continued to refuse, the stranger who saved his life would more than likely be next. After that, they would probably resort to torturing him or killing any other innocent person they could find until he agreed, maybe both. Eventually, they might just kill him and resort to trying to steal the missile. On the other hand, he could accept and give a terrorist group enough power to kill thousands or more, if they so chose to.

"How can I choose? Either way, someone is going to die. The only difference is how many. How do they expect me to decide?"

"They already know which choice you'll make. They are merely providing incentive for you make the decision faster."

"You can't expect me to do this. Thousands will die, maybe more."

"How many do you think have died already? They don't care about human loss, or haven't you already figured that out? At least by accepting, you will have the chance do something about it."

"It doesn't matter. They're going to kill us all whether or not I choose to do this, and even if they don't, we'll be dead in a week," he said miserably.

"Then this is an important week for you, isn't it?"

The old man was right. Alive, Tony had the chance to do something right. The only problem that he could see was when JC woke up. He was definitely going to get an earful for this one.

The next morning Tony was spouting off a list of supplies he would need. He had been provided with a good list of his own weapons that they had in their possession, all of which made Tony sick. After the initial shock and bewilderment of how they had gotten so many of his weapons he began to formulate a plan to at least stall them.

With several missiles in his possession he began to disassemble one, looking for a specific part. "So, what do I call you?" he asked the older man. He remembered that he had forgotten to do so much sooner.

"My name is Yinsen."

"Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too."

With all pleasantries aside he continued his work.

"This might go faster, if you included me in the planning process," Yinsen said after several minutes of watching Stark. Tony ignored him for a moment tossing aside a piece of the missile after retrieving the small fragment of metal from its insides.

"What is that?" Yinsen questioned.

"That's palladium, .15 grams. We need as much of it that we can get, so why don't you start breaking down the others," Tony replied, putting aside the thin piece of metal.

Tony then went about making a ring in one of the smelting cups that had been provided. The only problem he was having with his plan was the issue of making two devices. If there was not enough palladium to build two, he would have to think of something else that hopefully would not get his head ripped off by JC.

Half an hour later, Yinsen had finished breaking down all the missiles leaving a small pile of silver strips on the table.

"What happens next?" he asked.

"You did the operation, so you tell me how big her magnet is," he said without taking his eyes off his work.

"Why is that important?"

"Is it the same as mine, bigger, smaller, what? It's important enough," he replied tersely.

"Hers was not nearly as large as yours, so I'd say it was maybe half the size of yours."

"Are you positive? I need definite answers here, Yinsen," he asked impatiently.

"Yes, I'm positive. Why is any of this important for the Jericho?" he queried.

"How much palladium did you get?" Tony continued, ignoring Yinsen's question.

"Approximately 1.95 grams," he answered.

"See if you can't get them to hand over three more missiles exactly like those," he said finishing the ring for the second cup.

"If they can't give us anymore?"

"Then we are royally screwed," he answered curtly and went on to making another piece of the device. He felt bad about the way he had spoken to Yinsen. The man had saved his life, and this was how he treated him in return. He figured he would apologize later, but right now, time was of the essence.

Over an hour later Tony was still trying to figure out a solution to their problem. There were no more missiles that they could get palladium from. They were over a gram short, and that made quite a difference. At the moment he was trying to find a way to compensate for the difference.

The only options he could see would be for JC's to be incomplete or for both to be incomplete. A plan was beginning to formulate in his mind, but the only way for it to work would be for his to be complete. However, it did leave a great margin for failure. By his calculations, JC would be lucky if her device stayed active for any prolonged period of time. If it died before they got back home…He didn't really want to think about that.

There was the option of making hers complete, but that idea was quickly shot down. He would need a steady source of power for his idea to work. Any kind of power failure and it would be game over for all three of them. There was that, and the moment she heard of it, JC would yell at him for putting her safety above his own. Of course, if she found out hers was incomplete, she would call him an egotistical pig and possibly inflict physical pain. It didn't matter what he chose. It was inevitable that JC was going to yell at him.

Two days later with the issue of the devices resolved, it was time for them to be activated. Putting the last pieces together they both lit up, much to Stark's surprise.

"Those don't look like a Jericho missile," Yinsen noted.

"That's because they're miniature Arc Reactors. I have a bigger one powering my factory at home," Stark replied.

"What kind of power could they generate?"

"If my math is correct, which it always is, about three gigajoules per second."

Yinsen stood for a moment doing his own calculations for a moment before saying, "That could run your heart for fifty life times."

"Or something big for fifteen minutes." Stark passed him several thin pieces of paper, each one laid over the other.

"What is it?" Yinsen asked.

"Lay them out flat and see," Tony said.

Yinsen took them over to a better light source and did as instructed. He turned back to Tony, eyes wide in astonishment. "Do you think it's possible?"

"It won't be easy with us like this, but if you can get us hooked up to these," he said pointing to the reactors, "It will go much faster."

"But, what about your friend? I thought you said there wasn't enough palladium?"

"I know. The sooner we get this finished, the sooner I can get back home and make one that will really work."

* * *

Day five came and still JC had not regained consciousness. Tony was beginning to get worried. She may have had an Arc Reactor in her back, but there was no telling how stable it was. If they got out…

_No. Not 'if'. When_, Tony reminded himself. _When_ they got out, he was going to build a better reactor for her that would definitely not short out. He just had to get them out of here first. Hopefully, with his plan, they would do just that.

He began cutting at a piece of metal that was to become a piece of the chest plate when he heard groaning and sounds of struggle. Yinsen had advised that JC be restrained so she wouldn't hurt herself trying to remove the breathing tube, even put something between her teeth to keep her from biting down and damaging it. When Tony saw that she had nearly torn free from her restraints he hastily turned off the cutting torch and ran to her cot to hold her down.

"Easy, JC! You're safe," he said quickly trying to get her to calm down.

She either wasn't paying any attention to him or just didn't care about what he had said, because she continued to struggle even harder, jerking her head back and forth which caused the tube to pull at the equipment nearly knocking it over. Yinsen caught it before it fell.

"She'll have to be sedated, Stark. She's going to damage her trachea," he warned urgently.

That seemed to catch her attention. She looked wildly at Yinsen like a scared animal before turning her gaze on Tony. Seeing the fear and terror in her eyes was almost enough to scare him. He had never seen her genuinely terrified of anything before. She had faced down a small army without even a moment's hesitation, yet here she was practically cowering. Whether it was because Yinsen had threatened sedation or that she would hurt herself, he didn't know.

"No, not yet," he said to Yinsen. "JC, you have to calm down. He's a doctor. He's just trying to help. Okay?"

Her body was still trembling but she managed a small nod of her head. Some of her fear subsided when she seemed to realize that she wasn't in any immediate danger.

"That's it. It's okay," he said to her before turning to Yinsen. "Is it safe to get that thing out of her?" he asked.

"We can try, but I don't know if her lungs are strong enough yet."

JC looked at Yinsen with confusion before turning to Tony with a stare that demanded an explanation.

"You were hurt in the attack. Do you remember?"

She looked thoughtful before nodding again, but she seemed unsure of it. He wasn't surprised. Most of the details were still pretty hazy for him, too.

"The mortar that exploded had barbed shrapnel. It damaged your lungs. You haven't been able to breathe on your own for five days now," he explained gently. Her eyes went wide for a moment as the gravity of the situation sunk in for her. "I know that thing probably doesn't feel too good, but you might still need it. He's gonna try, but if he says it goes back, it goes back. Understood?"

She gave him an impatient eye roll before nodding her agreement. It almost made him smile. There was the JC he knew so well.

"There will be some discomfort. You'll need to stay relaxed and hold very still, all right?" Yinsen said as he prepared the tube for removal.

She nodded and let her body go slack. Tony released his grip on her at Yinsen's signal and let the man do his work. He pulled the tube out slowly and methodically. JC shut her eyes, grimaced, clenched her hands into fists, but she didn't budge an inch. When the tube was completely removed she gagged and took several uneasy, raspy breaths.

"My nose," she said hoarsely, referring to the other tube that had been used to get food to her stomach.

"Not yet. We'll just have to put it back in, if this doesn't work. How do you feel? Dizzy? Lightheaded?" Yinsen questioned.

"No…it's hard…but…manageable," she pushed out between gruff breaths.

"I'd like the other tube to stay for a few more minutes, just until we're absolutely sure you won't need the ventilator. I'm sure you don't want to go through replacing two tubes," Yinsen said.

"Thanks," she groaned.

Yinsen gave her a small smile before walking away to give Tony a few minutes alone with her.

"You sure you're okay? Your idea of getting shot only counts if you have to pull a piece of lead out, so humor me a minute and think about what a normal person would say."

"I'm fine," she said irritated as she began tugging at her restraints. "Untie…please."

"Sorry about that," Tony apologized as he began undoing the knots. "We wanted to make sure you didn't just yank the tube out. Nearly accomplished that anyways. I forgot how persistent you were."

As if to prove his point she immediately grabbed the tube from her nose with her free hand and practically yanked it out before he or Yinsen could do or say anything to stop her.

"You're hopeless, you know that?" he said flatly as she gagged.

"Don't…like tubes," she responded. "Why…we still…alive?"

"These things," he replied, tapping the glowing reactor in his chest.

"No," she said with a waving hand. She looked like she was about to clarify herself before she let a confused, "What?"

"Not all the shrapnel could be removed. It's trying to tear our organs apart. These magnets are keeping that from happening," he explained.

"My back…it's there…right?" she asked as she fidgeted uncomfortably for a moment.

He nodded.

"What…do they want?"

"They want the Jericho missile, the one I demonstrated."

She contemplated his response as her eyes began scanning the room. It wasn't long before her gaze found the security camera in a corner above the door. Satisfied with her examination she looked back at him.

"Why…me?"

"What do you mean?" he asked confused.

"Alive. Why?" she clarified.

He knew the reason, or at least had an idea. He wasn't sure she'd appreciate that reason, so he opted for avoidance. "Yinsen saved you. You almost didn't make it."

"Not…what….I meant. Terrorists…why are they…letting…me live?"

So much for avoiding the question. Option two: lie.

"I don't know. Guess they don't see a point in wasting the bullet," he said.

Now she glared at him. He didn't know what gave him away. He had an excellent poker face, one of the best. Nevertheless, she knew.

"Liar," she growled. "Truth. Now."

He gave a defeated sigh before saying, "Incentive, I think. When I tried to refuse them, they wanted to torture me. They couldn't because we were liked through a battery. If one of us disconnected, we'd both die. There was a way to keep me alive. But it would have meant you died."

"You're building…a weapon…of mass destruction…to keep me…alive? Seriously?" she asked cynically.

"What? You think I'd rather see you dead? What kind of man do you think I am?"

"The kind…that could…care less. Or…did you forget?"

Try as he might, Tony couldn't stop the frown that formed on his face. Despite what had happened in the past, he never wanted her to die. He couldn't believe that she would think that. Sure, he had been a jerk to her, but that didn't mean he wanted to watch her or anyone else die.

"I made a mistake. It doesn't mean I don't care," he said sternly.

"Still…a horrible…liar."

"Get some rest. This conversation's over," he said with a glare and stood to go back to his work.

"Like hell," she ground out as she tried to pull herself up from the cot. Tony quickly turned on her and restrained her.

"You are not moving from this spot," he scolded.

"Let…go," she snarled with a feral scowl.

"He's right, my dear," Yinsen chimed in. She turned her scowl on the man which made him visibly flinch. "Your injury was severe," he said more timidly. "Any exertion right now could re-open your wound and kill you. You must rest and give yourself time to heal."

She didn't look pleased at that fact, but she conceded and settled back down. Tony released her and again moved back toward his work. He didn't get very far when she reached up and grabbed his sleeve.

"Wait," she wheezed.

"What?" he asked tersely without turning back to look at her.

"You're not…actually…doing it…are you?"

He stole a glance over his shoulder to see that she was no longer scowling but looked genuinely disturbed at the thought of him building weapons for them. He turned and leaned over to face her at her level.

"What do you think?" he challenged.

She stared him in the eye with a look of judgment. When she finally made up her opinion she asked, "Then…what…are we doing?"

He smirked. At least she didn't think he was a total idiot.

"I'll tell you, but only if you get some rest," he offered.

"Don't need…more rest. Rested…for five…days."

"You don't get much of a choice. I'm sure Yinsen would still be willing to drug you, if that's what it takes," he teased. Tony had only meant it as a joke, but that wasn't how she took it. She grabbed him by the collar and snarled at him, that hint of fear returning to her eyes.

"Not…funny," she growled.

"Take it easy, JC. It was just a joke. Why does that bother you so much?" he asked. Now that the mystery of what was behind her fear had been revealed, he wanted to know why it scared her so much.

She looked like she regretted her reaction now since it would mean having to explain herself. He knew how much she hated talking about anything that was personal to her. He could barely get two words out of her back in Japan. But back then he had done it more out of annoyance than actual curiosity. Now he really wanted to know.

"Doesn't matter," she huffed and released him.

"Obviously it does. What is it?" he pressed.

"You…don't know. You've never…been…like that," she replied cryptically.

"Like what?"

"A coma," she admitted after another moment of hesitation. "It's like…you don't…exist. Drugs…they put me…in that…place. Don't want…to go back. Please…don't make me." She was near pleading by the end, and Tony could swear that he saw tears forming, but he was sure she would deny it, if ever asked.

He had no idea what that had been like for her. He had always thought that being in a coma was like sleeping: you might not be aware of reality, but it wasn't scary; there were dreams and other happy things that kept you from thinking about the fact that you weren't really part of the world anymore. What she was hinting at was something he didn't want to imagine.

"I promise. No more drugs," he said solemnly. Judging by her reaction she seemed to believe him. That was the first time that he could remember that she had ever done that. "Try to get some rest. You'll need it, if you plan on helping us any time soon."


	3. Chapter 3

**EDIT: Here's the new chapter 3. There are significant changes to this one just like two, so I hope you enjoy it!**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

After nearly a month in captivity, JC had finally been allowed to truly help with the construction of the suit of armor that would become the means of their escape. For awhile she was still confined to her cot and only allowed to do jobs that had nothing to do with the suit. Mostly she was just allowed to fiddle with some circuit boards Tony had managed to find and faked working on the launch mechanism. JC wasn't very happy with it, but Tony had managed to convince her that it was necessary, if only to fool anybody watching the security camera. The plan for their actual escape, though, was still a mystery.

Several plans had been constructed, but each one ended with a different version of death for Yinsen and JC while Tony was protected by the suit. Needless to say, they still had a big problem. On the upside, construction was going faster with another set of hands. JC had to be stopped several times from over exertion, but overall she was a help.

They were sitting around the workbench rigging an explosive that would not only blast open the door but hopefully take out any guards on the other side. JC was fairly knowledgeable in that area. Apparently she'd had to engineer some explosives during her time in the Air Force as well as one rare occasion during one of her security jobs. She didn't elaborate too much on that one, but she did hint that she'd managed to demolish a small building in the process. It wasn't really what she had planned, but it had gotten the job done.

"So what was it really like?" Tony asked as he connected the two gas canisters to the frame.

"What was what like?" she replied, not really paying him much attention.

"The coma," he clarified. He knew it was a touchy subject, but he was genuinely curious. He knew she was a strong woman able to take on disasters that he knew he would have crumbled under pressure at, but this coma was the first thing that he knew of that she was indisputably afraid of.

She stopped what she was doing and looked contemplative for a moment. He hoped she wouldn't refuse him. If they were going to be able to escape, they were going to have to learn how to trust each other. He was almost completely sure that he trusted her; he'd seen enough of what she could do that he knew she wouldn't be a liability. However, he was more than aware that she still had quite a few reservations about him. Something like this might just be a step in the right direction.

"It's not easy to explain," she began. "You know that feeling between sleep and awake? You're just floating, not really in one place or the other."

"Yeah," he said. Of course he knew that feeling. Most people did. That wasn't really scary though. If anything, he found it annoying since usually, if he was ever really aware of it, he would wake himself up unintentionally and have to start all over again.

"It's like that, but there's something different about it. You can't feel your body. You can't feel time. That falling feeling you get, it's not there. You're just in this void, and you're aware of it but not at the same time. It's just black. You don't know if you exist or not. You're just…there. All that stuff doctors say about the voices of loved ones guiding you back, it's not true. Not for me, at least. If there was ever a soul with me, a voice speaking to me, I never heard it. I was alone." Her voice started cracking by the end, but it was obvious she still had more to tell. Tony sat there quietly, urging her to continue with a thoughtful stare.

"When my mind started to come back…when I started to dream again…there was nothing good about it. Every nightmare I'd ever had just played over and over, each time worse than the last. It was my own personal torture chamber. Eventually my mind reached a point where I wasn't in a coma but having a night tremor. When I woke up, I didn't know the difference between the dream and reality. It wasn't a pretty sight, so I was told."

While before he had listened quietly out of respect, he was now speechless. He had no idea that it had been that bad for her. While he was sure these terrorists could devise some horrible forms of torture, being a prisoner in your own mind sounded far worse than any physical pain.

"I don't sleep now, not on my own. Every time I get to the in-between point I can't get past it to the dreams. I just get stuck in the black until I can consciously make myself wake up. And when I do, I'm terrified and sweating like I've been running from some monster. I have to take sleep aids, if I want to get some rest."

"But I thought drugs didn't help," Tony questioned.

"Sleep aids are different. They get me past the black and into dreams. Drugs that put you under for surgery, those keep me in the dark, keep me in that place. I don't expect you to understand it, but that's what it is for me," she said, her tone becoming harsh.

"JC, I didn't mean–"

"Save your pity. I don't want it. I don't need it. Let's just get back to work."

With that she went back to politely ignoring him. While he was glad that she trusted him enough to share her story, it felt like a hollow victory. Sure, he'd gotten to see a very vulnerable side of her, but those walls were all too quickly put back up, and she'd gone on the offense, like he had beaten the whole thing out of her instead of her willingly sharing it. Part of him expected as much from her, but part of him had hoped for something better. Still it was better than nothing. A year ago she would never have given him that much. This was progress.

* * *

During the rare occasions that they weren't working Tony and Yinsen chose to play backgammon while JC would either sit and watch or wander around the room. She said she was always thinking; of what, Tony had no idea. He imagined that maybe she was just looking for a way to wear herself out to help get to sleep. He had no way to judge since he slept so soundly he never noticed if she had nightmares or not. She always seemed to be awake before him, which would have been a good indication for him, but Yinsen never mentioned anything about her acting strange. Either way, he was sure he'd never know unless she told him so. He had a better chance of the terrorists letting them go; she'd never tell him.

"JC, why don't you come play a game?" Tony offered after watching her wander for nearly half an hour.

"No, thanks. I'm not very good. I tried playing with my dad a few times, but it ended when he thought it would be funny to capture one of my pieces before explaining that part of the game. That was the last time I played," she said, stopping briefly before continuing her walking.

"I could promise to not take any pieces," he offered. It would make the game less interesting, but at least it would get her to do something better than just wander around.

"No, thanks, Stark. That's more for you and Yinsen," she said.

Tony left her alone after that and started another game with Yinsen. Halfway through with no one particularly winning Tony said, "You still haven't told me where you're from."

"I'm from a small town called Gulmira. It's actually a nice place," he answered.

"Got a family?"

"Yes, and I will see them when I leave here. And you, Stark?"

Tony paused for a moment with an awkward look on his face before answering, "No."

"No?" Yinsen repeated. "So, you're a man with everything and nothing at all," he said with a small sigh. "What about you, JC? Do you have a family?"

"She has a teenage son," Tony answered. He barely looked up in time to see a tool flying toward his head and ducked. "What the hell was that for?" Tony exclaimed.

"I never told you I had a son, and that little fact was not on my résumé. How did you know about him? Have you been snooping into my personal files or something, Stark?" JC fumed.

"I didn't intentionally look through your files," Tony defended.

"Well, no one just accidentally goes through another's files, but I suppose under your definition of accident, I guess it just might!"

"That's not what I meant," Tony tried to explain.

"Then what did you mean?" she demanded, her tone rising another notch.

"You were on your death bed in Japan!" he exclaimed, matching her tone. The room fell silent for a moment as JC and Yinsen both waited for him to continue. "You were dying, and someone had to contact your family. Do you think I enjoyed the prospect of finding out I might have to tell a fifteen year old boy that his mother might die six thousand miles away, or that she might be in a permanent coma? I didn't tell you that I knew, because first, I never saw you again until that day in the desert, and second, I didn't think it mattered that much."

Yinsen sat silently looking like he was afraid to say anything for fear of having something thrown at him or being yelled at, both of which JC would probably have done.

They both stood there fuming for several minutes, each one looking like they were ready to fight the other at the slightest move before JC spoke. "I'm going to bed. Wake me when you're ready to start work again," she growled and lay on her cot with her back to the two men.

"I can never understand that woman. It seems that every time I open my mouth, she yells at me or throws something at me," Tony said in a low voice so as not to give JC a reason to return with more projectiles. "Did I seriously do something wrong? You're married, right? You've probably got a better insight on how to keep a woman happy. Maybe you can help me here."

"Finding her son after what happened was responsible. However, you should not have answered the question regarding her family. She does not seem to be the kind of person who trusts others easily," Yinsen explained hesitantly. From the look on his face, it was obvious he was trying to be careful about his words. He probably didn't want to start another fight, which Tony could understand.

"You're probably half right. She trusts other people; she's never trusted me. She hates me too much for that," Tony admitted, his shoulders slumping slightly.

"What makes you so sure of that?"

Tony sighed and raked his fingers through his hair. "There was more than the attack that happened in Japan. I had gotten especially drunk one night. I was being stupid, didn't want anything to do with JC, so I ran off, found a club to help me get over my bad mood. Anyways, I…my memory has always been a bit blurry about what happened. It's taken me this long just to piece it all together. When I somehow managed to get myself back to my room, JC was there. She was probably looking for my drunk ass."

Tony shook his head. "I was really out of it, because I tried to seduce her. She, of course, wouldn't hear any of it in my condition. I went too far, and…I think…I think I nearly raped her. The only thing I clearly remember is her fists pounding on me. She came close to beating me to a pulp. I wouldn't have blamed her." He paused for a moment, taking in another breath before continuing.

"The next morning, I never expected to see her again. What I did was grounds enough for her to quit, but she didn't. Bright and early the next day she was there pretending for everyone that nothing had happened. I couldn't have been more shocked." A look of contemplation crossed Yinsen's face as Tony went on.

"I still can't believe I did that though. I've never gone that far no matter how intoxicated I was. I'm not even sure if I ever truly did apologize for it. Some piece of work I am, huh?" he said. It had taken him over a year and a near death experience for him to finally realize his mistake. JC had been right. Maybe he had known for a long time what the truth was but never admitted it to himself. Somehow it felt too late for any meaningful apology.

Yinsen looked at him sympathetically and said, "You were a different man a year ago. The person you described then and the man sitting before me now are not the same."

"Thanks, Yinsen, but the fact is that one month in a cave doesn't change someone. I was that man before I came here, and unfortunately I'll be the same when we leave. People like me don't change," he said and walked away to his cot on the other side of the room. He turned to JC for a moment catching a glimpse of her face. Her features were scrunched up in a scowl, which he should have expected. What wasn't expected were the tears the he saw on her cheek. He was the cause of those tears, and it twisted his insides to know that horrid truth.

He lay down on his cot and closed his eyes trying to get to sleep, which was nearly impossible through the anger he felt towards himself. He had hurt her without even giving it a second thought. He now truly felt like the villain JC had always seemed to portray him as and knew that it was true. He really was a monster.

* * *

Several weeks later the suit was getting closer to completion. The plan, however, was still where it was those several weeks before. The other thing that hadn't changed was the silence between JC and Tony. The only time they spoke was to get tools from each other or grunting for the other to move.

One evening, after getting especially dirty from work, Tony finally decided it was time to wash off some of the dirt and grime. Showers weren't exactly a luxury available to them, so a sponge and water bucket had to suffice every several days, if even that often.

He took off his shirt, and taking the sponge, he began to scrub his arms. Going slowly from the thickness of the grime, he worked until he reached his shoulders. He began to scrub the back of his shoulders but found it difficult to bend his arms that far back.

"Here, let me help you," JC said grabbing the sponge. Tony tried to protest, but JC silenced him by saying, "It's not like I've never seen you without a shirt on, so stop complaining." He quickly gave up and let her continue.

After about a minute of silence, Tony was about to speak, but JC beat him to it. "I'm sorry."

"What?" Tony asked dumbly. That wasn't what he had expected.

"Yelling at you, throwing that wrench," she clarified. "I'm sorry about that. I…I overreacted. I shouldn't have done that."

"You really don't need to apologize. I overstepped my bounds. I deserved it. Well, maybe not the wrench," he quipped. "But the yelling, I definitely deserved the yelling."

He could hear her snicker, a sure signal he had lifted her mood. He smirked; at least he still knew how to make her smile. But he didn't want just that. He turned around and touched her forearm, mostly to be able to keep a hold of her if she thought about walking off, but partly so he could get the point across that his next words were sincere. Amazingly, she didn't pull away from him.

"JC, I really am sorry. I know your family is something very private and personal. I never meant to—"

She cut him off by holding a hand up to him. "Stark, stop. Let's just agree that we both were wrong on something and let the whole thing go. We need to work together now. We can't afford to be squabbling. Our lives aren't worth that."

He wanted to smile at her words. She was actually agreeing to forgive him. Well, not quite, but it was close enough for him. A year ago he knew she would never have let him live it down. To him, this was amazing. He wanted to smile the biggest smile he could, but now wasn't the time. There was still more he needed to say, and he knew it was going to kill whatever moment they were having.

"There's something else we need to settle, and I don't ask this lightly," he said solemnly, staring her in the eye so she knew he was completely serious.

"What is it?" she asked just as seriously, her eyes saying that she knew what was coming and knew she wouldn't like it, but knew it had to be done.

Tony took a steadying breath before continuing. "We have a lot of problems between us, largely caused by me, but for the sake of us getting out alive, I'm asking that we put all of our problems behind us. I don't mean forgive and forget, but—"

"I understand," she said, cutting him off. Her eyes clouded over something between anger and sorrow. "Until we are safe, any issue I have with you is gone." With that she grabbed his other hand and gave the sponge back. "I'm gonna go help Yinsen," she said and walked back to Yinsen.

Tony sighed in frustration. He hadn't wanted to ask that of her, but if he didn't, they would have been at each other's throats indefinitely. That was the last thing any of them needed. They were nearly ready, and it was like she had said: they had to work together. Personal problems were not an option. The only consolation that came out of it was that, for once in the entire time they had known each other, he had finally said a sincere apology. Maybe, just maybe, he would eventually forgive himself enough to ask her forgiveness for his much more severe crime.

* * *

Two weeks later they were nearly ready. The only things remaining were face protection for Tony and a better plan. But truthfully, there wasn't a lot of time left to make a better one, so they would have to stick with what they had. He would clear the way, and they would follow behind him. JC was skilled enough that if she could get a weapon, she could take out any that he missed and be able to protect Yinsen. The problem would come when they actually got out of the cave. They only knew one exit, and Tony didn't see any of the vehicles that they had to possess. That meant they were hidden somewhere else, and they wouldn't have time to search every part of the caverns to find them. That wasn't a good thing for them, but they didn't have any other options.

Tony was working on cutting a piece for the mask while JC was helping Yinsen with the mechanism that would get the door open when a familiar knock on the door came. They followed the normal drill and put their hands on their heads and stood as several guards filed into the room.

Behind them was a new face. Instead of the shorter, stouter man that often came in to check their progress, this one was taller, better built, and sported a bald scalp. There was no mistake that he was the true leader of the group. The way he carried himself when he walked was prideful, domineering.

"Relax," he said cordially.

Warily they lowered their hands.

The man walked towards Tony and looked at the Arc reactor in his chest. After he was satisfied with his inspection of the Arc reactor he said, "The bow and arrow was once the pinnacle of weapons technology that allowed the great Genghis Khan to rule from the Pacific to the Ukraine, an empire twice the size of Alexander the Great and four times the size of the Roman Empire." He paused to examine the stack of drawings.

They each did their best to hide their fear. Tony was about to move, but Yinsen motioned for him to stop.

The man seemed satisfied and continued with his speech. "But today, whoever holds the latest Stark weapons rules these lands. And soon, it will be my turn."

He turned to Yinsen and began speaking in Arabic. Tony didn't know what he was saying, but by the tone of his voice he could only assume that the man was not pleased with Yinsen. The conversation seemed to escalate when two men stepped forward and forced Yinsen to his knees. The leader then went over to the furnace and pulled an ember from the fire. More words were passed between the two as Yinsen's head was forced down onto an anvil. The man continued to speak as the ember was moved closer to Yinsen's face. Tony wanted to do something, anything that would help Yinsen, but he knew that any false move would get someone killed, namely Yinsen.

What had started as a casual conversation turned in a split second to yelling, the leader becoming more aggressive as he held the ember mere inches from Yinsen's face. After several rounds of this, with both getting progressively louder, JC finally spoke out. Everyone turned and looked at her in surprise not only because she was speaking out against them, but she had done so in their own language. Tony knew he should have expected it, but it was still a shock to him.

She continued to rattle on in their language. The man seemed interested in what she was saying since her stopped and turned his full attention to her. As they continued to converse, Yinsen's face seemed to go a shade paler. What could she possibly be telling him that would scare Yinsen? The man didn't seem angry by whatever she was saying. So why then did he look terrified?

The leader looked to his men said something to them. Several of them came forward and after forcing her to her knees pointed their guns to her head. Not good.

"Stop this! What do you want? A delivery date?" Tony exclaimed.

JC said something to the man, but she didn't seem even the slightest bit perturbed. In fact, the look on her face was cocky. Tony didn't know what game she was playing, but he didn't like where it seemed to be going.

The leader dropped the ember on the anvil and threw the tongs away. "You have until tomorrow to assemble my missile. If you fail, she will be the first to die," he said and ordered for JC to be taken.

Tony was about to protest, but JC silenced him. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. Just do as he says."

He watched in horror as they dragged her away and shut the doors. Not wasting an instant, he closed the distance between him and Yinsen and grabbed the older man by the collar.

"What the hell just happened?" he demanded in a growl. When Yinsen didn't answer in a timely matter, Tony shook him roughly. "Tell me what she said!"

"She gave us time," Yinsen managed.

"What are you talking about? What the hell did she say to them?" he demanded again.

"She gave herself up to buy us time," he said with a stern glare. He was obviously as displeased about the situation as Tony was. "Don't waste it."

He had no intention of wasting it, but he sorely wished she hadn't done this. Their plan would be hard enough to pull off. Now he would have to worry whether or not they would kill her before he could get to her. He knew she could hold her own for awhile, but if they were smart, they would restrain her, make it impossible for her defend herself and execute her. But he had a sinking feeling that they wouldn't do that. He wasn't an idiot. He had seen the carnal looks from more than one of the men. If they touched her, he knew he wouldn't hesitate to kill them all.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

JC was dragged away from Stark's prison/work-cell and quickly thrown into another smaller room. In the few moments it took for her to get back on her feet the door was shut and locked. A quick glance around confirmed her initial observation and made JC momentarily glad she wasn't claustrophobic. The room was barely big enough for her to stand near the only piece of furniture it held, a small cot.

This wasn't part of her original plan. She had only wanted to spare Yinsen. Getting separated was not the expected outcome. Taken and tortured, maybe, but simply separated, no. Now came the problem of escaping her new prison and reuniting with the others when they made their move. She just had to figure out how.

For the mean time she sat on her cot and began to think, tried to remember anything useful that could aid her in making a plan. The halls were long and dark, lit only by several lights strung out every few feet, each one leading to another storage area for weapons and other necessary supplies. She remembered passing by a room with several monitors and a man sitting idly watching. That had to be security.

Thinking of this, she noticed there were no cameras in this room. It had obviously been set up as another prison, but why were there no cameras? Surely they would want to keep tabs on anyone in the room, even if the purpose was isolation.

Pushing this thought to the back of her mind she went back to her prior task. More long hallway followed the security room, then a bright area that seemed to lead outside with several vehicles. That had to be an emergency exit. Tony and Yinsen had been outside once and they never said anything about vehicles. It made sense, though. A smart architect would have more than one exit in case of cave-ins. For terrorists, it would also be useful in situations of compromised position.

If she could get away, that would give her and Yinsen a way out, and Tony could stay to destroy the weapons as originally planned. The only question was how.

This brought her back to the question of no cameras. There wasn't much to use for escape from the cell, and more than likely there were guards on the other side of the door. Why not go the extra measure and install at least one camera? Several thoughts ran through her mind, all of which made her uneasy.

Putting these thoughts behind her, she tried to formulate a plan based off the information she knew. It was obvious that when Tony began his plan the first place they would go was to either kill her or bring her out and use her as bait.

Should she wait until then to try her own escape? Did she have much of a choice? Not really. So she had to wait. Not knowing how long it would be, JC lay down on her cot trying to get some rest. She knew it would be almost useless.

She hadn't slept much over the past three months with the exception of her first week when she was unconscious from her injuries. Trying to get to sleep terrified her. The first few nights hadn't been so bad, but after that it was nearly impossible. It wasn't until she was practically tripping over herself in exhaustion, which would take nearly four days sometimes, before she would allow herself to try drifting to sleep. She had been very good at keeping it a secret from Yinsen, but she had an inkling that Stark had been catching on to her habit. It made her regret telling him about her problem, but at the same time it had felt oddly refreshing to finally tell someone about it. Tony Stark wouldn't have been her first choice, but there had been something about the way he'd asked, something different about him. She didn't know what it was, but it was definitely different from the man she had known a year ago.

She quickly pushed that thought aside. She couldn't think about him being a different person, because that just brought back memories of what he had been, and that would do nothing to help her keep thoughts of wanting to strangle him in check. It was crucial, now more than ever, that they trust each other to do what was needed to get free.

Keeping that thought in the forefront of her mind, she let herself drift into a semi restful state. She would need to be at her best when Tony finally made his move; and she would make sure she was.

* * *

_Explosions rattled the ground as bullets pierced the air. People ran screaming into their homes trying to find any form of protection from the fire fight. It would do them little good, in the end. It never did._

"_Contact right! Contact right!" she yelled as more ammunition flew by. _

"_We're cornered! We need to move back, find better cover!" the second in command shouted._

"_You all heard him! Fall back!" she ordered. _

_All but one, the one that mattered most to her, obeyed._

"_Sergeant, where are you going? I gave you an order," she called._

"_We can make it!" _

"_You're crazy! It's a minefield out there, and there's not enough cover to make it through! We have to move back and wait for reinforcements! Now, move back!" she ordered again. _

"_We'll be dead by the time they arrive! I refuse to die here!"_

"_If you go out there, you're as good as dead! Now, move back! I will not tell you again!"_

"_I'm going home! You can stay here, but I'm getting back to my family!" he yelled and ran out._

"_Sergeant!" she cried and tried to stop him, but a hand clamped down on her shoulder restraining her. She tried to pull away; she had to save him. But the person holding her back had an ironclad grip. Helplessly, she watched as seconds later more gun fire erupted and another explosion filled the air. Smoke surrounded the soldier, and he was lost._

"_Brenan!"_

* * *

"Brenan!" JC gasped coming back from her dream. She was breathing heavily and was covered in cold sweat. She stared around the room and her memory returned. There were no explosions, no bullets flying. There was only her and her cold, rock walled prison.

"You dream quite loudly," a familiar voice said from the door.

She bolted up to stare at the leader from before. It took most of her willpower to force herself to stay calm. She was still shaken from her dream, but she would not have it mistaken as fear of him. "If you're here to torture me, you won't learn anything different from what Yinsen already told you. They're building the Jericho missile. It's as simple as that," she said, immediately on the offensive.

"And here I thought we might remain civil," he replied calmly.

She narrowed her gaze at him. "You've shot at us, nearly killed us, imprisoned, and threatened us. Remind me where the civility is in any of that."

"If I wanted any of you dead, you would already be so. You would have been the easiest to dispose of. I could have easily let you succumb to your wounds, but I've let you live thus far. I would think you'd be more gracious," he said with a smirk.

"Why did you let me live?" She needed to know. It was a question that had always been gnawing at her. If they just wanted a life to threaten, they had Yinsen. They didn't need her, especially in the condition she had been in. "I was just his bodyguard, no one of any real value. Why did you let Yinsen save me?"

"The way you guarded over him in the desert, such persistence and loyalty, it was hard to believe anyone could have such dedication to a man they had supposedly known for mere hours. My best paid man would not so willingly lay down his life, not if there was a chance he might escape."

"That's the difference between me and your men; I actually like my job," she threw back.

"Perhaps," he admitted, "but we both know that isn't the truth."

She tried to keep her cool, but the man was beginning to piss her off. After God-only-knew how many months of being held in this hellhole, she was ready for some answers; playing nice wasn't going to get them. "Spit it out already. What do you want with me?"

"Perhaps we, as you Americans put it, got off on the wrong foot. Introductions are in order. I am Raza, leader of the Ten Rings."

"You already know who I am, so cut the crap already and give me a straight answer. Why did you save me?" she demanded.

"Even with your life hanging on by a thread, you are still a useful…incentive for Mr. Stark."

She scoffed. "I think you have a serious overestimation of what my life means to Tony Stark."

"Based on what I have seen, he cares a great deal about what happens to you."

"At best, I'm just a pretty face that he thinks he can bed. You're wasting your time if you think threatening me will get you your missile faster."

He took several steps closer to her. Her body wanted to flinch, but she held back. If this was the part where the pain would start, she'd gladly take it. As long as he was focused on her, he wasn't focused on the two men planning their escape.

"Why then would you offer yourself? Since your life means so little, why not leave Yinsen to his fate?"

"He saved both of us. I know torture, real torture. He wouldn't survive. I'm repaying a debt, nothing more."

He took another step closer, the distance between them lessened to only a yard. "I'd like to believe you, but I know you better than that."

She stared at him impassively. "Is that so? Please, enlighten me," she challenged.

"Tell me about last year, your time in Japan."

Her blood ran cold. No one knew about Japan. She had been kept out of the media. The most anyone knew was that an attack had happened and someone had intervened to save Stark. Publicly, no one else knew the truth.

"It was big mess is what it was. Not much to tell." She saw no point in denying her involvement. He must have done his research, maybe dug a bit deeper and found out she was his bodyguard then too. It was nothing that could disturb her.

"The way your employer tells it, there was much more." He closed the space between them by another two feet and spoke just above a whisper. "Apparently, you were quite the little whore."

She lunged at him, nails threatening to tear through his flesh. The monster had no right, and he would pay for what he'd done, but not before she did. He anticipated her reaction and grabbed her by the wrists. She struggled against him for a moment before he backhanded her, sending her to the ground. She groaned and winced at the pain, the coppery taste of blood in her mouth. She tried to push herself to her feet, but she felt too weak, malnourishment and dehydration reminding her that she was in no shape for a real fight. Based on the maniacal laugh the man gave, he knew it, too.

She cursed herself for falling for his trick so easily. She had to give him credit for that. He took the time to learn about his opponents. Intelligence made for a more dangerous terrorist, but even Raza had to have a weakness. If she could find it, she could exploit it. First, she'd have to survive whatever little game he was trying to play.

"You have spirit. I see now why Stark wanted you, and why you offered your life." He knelt down to her level and forced her to look at him. "With Yinsen dead, you would be left alone with him. That thought scares you, doesn't it?"

She glared defiantly at him. "He fears me, not the other way around. You're wasting your breath."

His gaze turned cold as his hand wrapped around her neck. She fought to maintain control though his grip was crushing. She had to remain calm. She needed to stay in control. That was the only way she had any hope of getting out of this. But that sinking feeling in her gut was telling her the very thing she didn't want to hear. This man wasn't here for an interrogation.

"You're brave to test my temper but foolish. You will regret it."

She saw the carnal look in his eyes and knew her suspicion was correct. There was reason there were no cameras in the room. Now she knew why.

Her heart began to pound. She could feel the adrenaline rush through her body. The little voice in the back of her head told her to do something, anything to stop him, but something stronger kept her frozen: irrational fear that kept her mind in a dark place, a place where she didn't know how to defend herself, couldn't defend herself.

She pushed him away and scrambled to her feet, ignoring the way her muscles ached and seemed to scream at her. He wasn't perturbed in the slightest. He came at her again, grabbed her wrists, and pinned her to the wall. Her mind went deeper into that dark place, memories of that horrible night flashing back as fresh as the moment they happened. She had to shut her eyes against it, because it wasn't Raza's face she saw; it was Tony. She couldn't think about this, not now. Tony wasn't the bad guy, not here. Tony had helped to save her life. Tony was the good guy. But it didn't matter. The dark place in her mind told her different, kept her trapped in that horrid place.

"No," she whimpered. She could hardly believe that had been her voice: the voice of a child. It was getting worse. It wasn't Tony any more. It was _him_. It was the one person she didn't want to think about, couldn't, for the sake of her own sanity.

"Yes," the man before her growled. She couldn't think, couldn't breath as his body pinned hers to the wall. She could feel his hot breath on her neck as he moved in closer.

She was in that moment again, the moment of now or never. The last time she was in this position she had let the man live. Not this time. There was no incentive for her to stay her hand this time. If she had the opportunity, she would kill him.

With every ounce of her resolve she brought her knee up hard on his groin. His grip loosened enough for her to pull free and deliver a solid blow to his abdomen. With him doubled over she wrapped her arms around his neck before kicking the back of one knee to force him to the ground.

"I have no reason to spare your miserable life. I suggest you give me one before I snap you in two," she hissed in his ear.

"Kill me…and you will never…escape alive."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that. Your men aren't very bright. If they were, they'd already be in here. I've taken on worse than this. Last chance."

"Try to escape…your friends will die…before you could ever…hope to reach them."

"Good to know your life means nothing to you. Makes this easier," she said tightening her grip.

As she was about to end his life he finally reacted. Thrusting his elbow into her hip, she lost her footing, giving him the opportunity he needed to grab her by the hair. She clawed at his hand trying to force him to release her, but he grabbed one arm and after twisting it behind her, shoved her into the nearest wall.

"You viper!" he hissed. "You will regret that." She whimpered from the blow to her face, the jagged rock wall biting into her flesh causing blood to run down her cheek.

"I highly doubt it. I never regret trying to kill assholes like you," she taunted. She was done with submission. If he wanted to take her, she wouldn't let him without a fight.

"We will soon see."

Before he could carry out his threat, screaming could be heard from outside the door along with someone banging on the door. "Raza! Raza!" someone cried.

"What?" he barked.

A very frightened man entered the room spouting off in some language that JC could not understand. From the sound of what she heard from outside, Tony and Yinsen were making their move. Raza gave the man a line of instructions before handing JC over to him and exiting the room. He took her, and after securing her hands behind her, forced her in the same direction.

When they finally came to a stop at the main entrance of the cave a line of men was waiting, each one carrying a weapon. In the distance, screaming men could be heard along with the sound of rapid gunfire and someone yelling like a madman.

In the next instant several men ran out in front of the line with none other than Yinsen chasing after them. When he saw the men, all with their guns pointed at him, he froze. From the fearful look in his eyes, one could tell he knew he was heading for his death.

JC looked from the men to Yinsen and back and knew full well what was about to happen. "Run, Yinsen! Dammit, run!" she yelled. She knew it was useless, but there had to be something he could do to get away.

They opened fire on the man without hesitation, and he fell without a word.

"No!" she cried. In a frenzy of rage she rammed into the nearest man. Another came forward to restrain her, but he was met with a foot to the face. With every man alerted now, they all turned to subdue her. Why none had shot her yet was still a mystery. Surely they had no qualms over shooting a woman. They had done so nearly three months ago in the middle of the desert. Why would that change now? Maybe they still thought they could use her as a hostage. She didn't know. She didn't care. Hatred was all she felt at the moment. Vengeance was all she wanted.

They would try to team up on her, one behind holding her in place while another would try to hit a blow that would immobilize her. Each one ended with a foot hitting some part of their body as her head would make contact with another's face from behind. At least one person's nose had been broken leaving blood on her neck and hair.

After finding a long enough pause, she jumped up and swung her arms beneath her feet bringing her hands to her front. Now she was a force to be reckoned with. Not one man could touch her, though, that didn't stop them from trying. Her body ached and cried, but she ignored it. She knew this might mean the end, but she didn't care anymore.

She could hear and feel several times when a rib would crack or a neck snap from the force of one of her blows. For the briefest moment in time she was filled with joy that they were in pain, overjoyed that they were suffering for what they had done. They deserved to die for what they had done. Yinsen was kind, gentle, innocent. He had a family. He deserved to see them again. But he never would. He'd never get to hug his children or hold his wife again. She understood that kind of pain too well. She was sure, now more than ever, she might not see her son again. Even if by some miracle she got out of the cave, there were still miles of desert she'd have to cross. She knew she wouldn't survive. If this was going to be the end, she was going to take as many of Raza's men with her as she could. It was the least she could do for Yinsen.

When it seemed the fight was over and every man in the room was on the ground she was ready to run and find Tony, but a blow to the back of her head halted her progress. She had missed one. The one she despised the most, the one who had given the order to kill Yinsen had survived her wrath.

Darkness began to cloud her vision despite her efforts to keep it at bay. She couldn't go down, not now. She had to stop him, had to finish the job. She could hear the sound of a gun being loaded and cocked back. Her only thought was that death was finally coming to her. Her eyes closed as she waited for its sting.

* * *

**AN: So here's the revised chapter 4. Hoped you enjoyed it. If you did, leave me a review and let me know what you think.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

He moved swiftly through the corridor, punching through any guards that were unlucky enough to be in his way. They would try to shoot through the armor, but it was futile. Every shot would simply bounce harmlessly off.

He went over the directions again in his head, trying to remember the way to his freedom. It was straight until the fork. From there it was right, then another right. It was that simple. All he had to do now was get there. The men ran ahead of him, whether it was from fear or to try to stop him before he reached the door, he didn't know. For some, it was probably both.

He could see the door ahead of him as the group ran behind it and shut it, leaving one of their own behind. So much for honor among terrorists. The man screamed and jumped at the door banging as loudly as he could in an attempt to escape. Tony came up to the terrified man and gave him a hard smack with the side of his arm, knocking the man out and putting a dent in the door.

With the man out of the way, he continued to bang on the door, putting several large dents in it before it finally gave way. The men behind began yelling orders at each other and continued to fire at him. Swinging his arms around, he hit several of them, sending them to the ground with a loud thud. He aimed for another, but the man ducked, causing Tony's arm to become imbedded in the rock.

He jerked on his arm, hoping that it would come out, but the piece of armor was stuck tightly. He gave several more tugs before he heard a loud clang on the side of his helmet. He turned to see a man on the ground, a circle of red coming from his forehead. Apparently the helmet worked better than Tony had anticipated.

With a final tug his arm came free, and he was ready to continue his quest for freedom.

He saw the light at the end of the tunnel, joy and dread welling up inside of him. He was almost there and yet still so far from sweet freedom. Where was JC? Were they going to use her as a hostage to make him surrender? What if they had already killed her? No. They wouldn't do that. JC would never let them kill her so easily. She was a fighter, a warrior. But Yinsen wasn't. He might have bought time with his madman routine, but he doubted that they would spare the man. He only hoped Yinsen was still alive, that both his friends were alive.

The corridor widened to reveal the entrance of the cave. He scanned the area for assailants only to find Yinsen laid out on sacks of U.S. supplies.

"Yinsen!" he cried, praying that the man was still alive.

"Watch out!" Yinsen warned weakly.

Tony turned in time to see the leader firing an RPG directly at his armor. He dodged and shot off his own rocket. The explosion sent rocks and debris from above, rendering the leader unconscious.

When Tony was sure he was no longer a threat, only then did he move to Yinsen, pulling off a bag of grain.

"Stop," Yinsen breathed.

"Come on, we gotta go." Yinsen didn't move. Tony could see the blood, saw how pale he looked. There was part of him that said the man was a lost cause, but he refused to accept that. He had come this far, and he wasn't about to give up now. "Move for me. We've got a plan. We're gonna stick to it," Tony urged quickly.

"This was always the plan."

"Come on. You're gonna go see your family. Get up."

"My family is dead," he admitted with a strange calmness. "I'm going to see them now, Stark."

Upon hearing this, Tony's face fell. He felt such pity for the dying man, and yet such great respect. He had given his life so willingly for someone he barely knew.

"It's okay. I want this," he said gently. "I want this."

"Thank you for saving me," was all he could think of to say.

"Don't waste it. Don't waste your life," he said, his breath becoming labored as he breathed his last.

Tony set his jaw and looked out at the bright daylight re-energized by his newfound rage. Yinsen was an innocent, desperate man, and they had shot him down like an animal. This could not be forgiven. It would not be forgiven.

He pulled his mask back down, ready to go out and turn the camp into an inferno when he heard the groan of a woman. He turned around to see JC lying on the ground, half conscious, blood spattered across the back of her head and neck.

"JC!" he choked out as he frantically made his way over to her, praying he was not too late to save her. He wouldn't be able to bear it if she died, too.

"Tony? Is that you?" she asked, half dazed as she stared up at his iron face. He saw now that she had a fresh cut on her face, a trail of blood covering her cheek. She looked like she had been beaten a bit, but judging by the number of bodies around her, the terrorists had been beaten a lot worse.

"Yeah, it's me. Are you all right? You're covered in blood," he said worriedly, as he helped her up and untied her hands.

"It's not my blood. Someone broke their face with my head. Where's Yinsen?" she queried, worry lacing her voice.

"He's dead," he answered her solemnly.

She looked over in the direction of Yinsen's body and stifled a cry. "Oh, God, no. No, no, no! I tried to stop him, but it was too late. Oh, God," she wailed, beginning to go into hysterics.

"JC, don't lose yourself," he demanded, grabbing her shoulders with both bulky, iron fists. "I know you're scared, but I need you here. I need you in this moment. Can you do that?" He remembered those words that she had used on him in Japan when he had started to succumb to fear. If anything would work on her now, it would be those words. And he needed them to work. He knew he wouldn't be able to finish this if she fell apart now.

It took her a moment to register his words, but she quickly calmed herself. "I'm fine. I'm here," she responded automatically, a tone of seriousness coming over her.

"Good. Now, stick close to me. It's about to get hot," he ordered, releasing her.

"Wait! There's another way out. There are a couple of Humvees back there. We can get out without a problem," she explained quickly.

"You go that way. I'll meet up with you as soon as I'm finished."

"No, you have to come with me. There's no need for you to go that way."

"I have to, JC. I have to destroy my weapons."

"But, Tony-"

"No, JC," he interrupted gruffly. "I have to do this. I created those weapons out there. It has to be me that destroys them. It's the only way I can be sure."

She stood there in shock for a moment. The look in her eyes was indiscernible; it was as if she was staring at a stranger.

"Okay, Tony. Do what you have to. Just do one thing for me."

"What's that?" he asked.

"Whatever you do, don't die," she pleaded, a hint of a smirk passing over her lips.

"Only because you asked so nicely," he replied, also smirking beneath his helmet.

"I'll find you out there," she said by way of an answer, then ran back down a different corridor to where he assumed was the other exit.

He turned back around to the entrance of the cave and stepped out into the light with several loud, booming steps. After a brief moment, the rest of the camp erupted with weapons fire, each shot aimed right at him.

When the barrage finally ceased, he looked out at the faces of the remaining terrorists, shock and fear present in their stares. "My turn," he declared darkly, and let loose his storm of fire.

* * *

She ran back down the hall to where she had seen the Humvees. She was nearly there when she caught the glimpse of the weapon storage room. Inside there was a man looking for fresh ammo. She stopped and ran in, disabling the man before he knew what had hit him. She grabbed his gun thinking it would no doubt have some use, but then another thought struck her. Tony was trying to destroy all of his weapons, but with these in here, he'd never succeed. Quickly glancing around the room she found a box of grenades, dynamite, and fuses. Working quickly, she grabbed the fuses and dynamite and rigged them to give her just barely enough time to get out before they went off and stuffed it in the box of grenades. The confined space would easily amplify the blast enough to destroy the weapons and probably most of the caves. Searching the body of the guard she found a lighter and lit the fuse.

Not wasting another moment, she picked up her stolen gun and ran down the corridor. She figured she had about two minutes before the dynamite would go off. That left very little room for error.

As she ran through the opening of the cavern that held the vehicles, someone began to fire at her. She ducked quickly behind one of the vehicles, trying to find the source of the shots. She hadn't expected anyone to be in here. From the sound of the alert, she had assumed everyone would have moved to the main entrance. Obviously, she was wrong. And she didn't have time to waste with them.

Moving quickly, she opened the door of the vehicle and got into the passenger seat. The gunner let off several more rounds, shattering the windows. She ducked down, shielding her head with her arms. She didn't dare shoot back. She had a limited supply of ammo, and she might need it if they managed to chase them down in the desert.

With only seconds remaining she quickly crawled over to the driver's seat and turned the key in the ignition, slamming her foot against the accelerator. The vehicle shot through the exit and out into the desert, following the man-made trail through the mountains. An instant later she could hear the sound of explosions from with the cave and barely caught the sight of tumbling rock. But that wasn't the only thing in her rear view mirror.

Sparing a glance behind her, she saw two more Humvees following closely behind her. "Crap! You have got to be kidding me!" she exclaimed angrily.

The path ended abruptly opening to the vast, desolate desert. With the extra room to maneuver, she began to serpentine across the sand, hoping that one of them would get careless and slam into the other. With no such luck, she spun the vehicle around and headed straight for them.

They swerved aside, letting her pass between them as they too spun around. She cursed again and tried to come up with a new plan as one of the drivers began shooting at her. "What the hell? Don't you guys ever run out of ammo?" she bellowed. In the distance, an explosion could be heard as a cloud of smoke billowed up from behind the mountains.

"Geeziz, Tony. Could you make a bigger explosion?" Looking closer through the smoke she saw some sort of projectile shooting away from the cloud and arcing over the mountains. "That is the exact opposite of what I asked you, kamikaze! Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

She watched carefully where he landed and headed straight for him, a plan formulating on how to lose her pursuers. She sped over a dune spotting the dark shape of Tony against the pale sand.

She spun around again, facing one of her pursuers while the other kept close behind. Cursing, she grabbed her gun and jammed it against the gas pedal with the steering wheel, going faster toward the other driver. Neither made a move to turn away from their course. The driver behind her kept his own course, probably unaware of where she was heading.

With barely a hundred feet left between them, their deadly game of chicken came to an end as she jumped out of the vehicle and rolled across the sand, letting the three vehicles crash into each other and causing an explosion that killed the other two drivers. She surveyed the damage sparing one final thought for the fact that she had just lost her gun.

_So much for protection,_ she thought lamely.

Getting over the shock of what had happened, she got up and ran towards the dark spot against the sand that she knew to be Tony. When she reached him, he was trying to free himself from the wreckage of what had been his armor. "Tony, are you okay? I saw you flying over those mountains," she said as she began to help him out of the hole.

"Ow!" he exclaimed when she tried pulling on his right arm.

"What is it?"

"My shoulder. I think the landing screwed it up," he said with a grimace.

When he was finally out of the hole she gently pulled his jacket off to inspect his shoulder. She could see blood, but it wasn't profuse, and it didn't look like it was dislocated. Both were good things.

"Looks like you're just cut up a bit, maybe jammed your shoulder. You're gonna be fine," she declared.

"I'll believe it when I hear it from a real doctor. Your idea of fine is getting stabbed a few times and shot."

"At least I don't try to blow myself up," she countered. "That smoke can probably be seen for miles."

"What about you?" He motioned to the three flaming vehicles. "Cutting it a bit close, weren't we?"

"Don't turn this on me. I'm allowed to do that. You're the one who said he wouldn't get himself killed. How is that not trying to get yourself killed?"

"You just said 'don't die'. You never said I couldn't _try_," he pointed out.

"Don't," she said, smacking his good shoulder, "try to be cute with me, mister. You're not that funny."

"Ow! You know what? You need to grow a sense of humor," he complained, rubbing the spot where she had hit him.

"I'll think about it. Come on. We need to get out of here, in case there's anyone left. They'll follow your trail right to us," she announced, scanning the area.

"Any suggestions on direction?"

"Hang on. I'm almost positive," she said, doing her final calculations. "That way should lead back to the base," she added, pointing.

"'Should'?"

"I can't say for sure, since I was busy trying to keep you alive when they brought us here. That direction is our best bet. Now, unless you'd like to stand here arguing some more, I suggest we leave," she said, and marched off.

"Wait up!" he called, rushing to catch up.

* * *

Hours later, they were still walking across the desert. The sun had begun to sink down, turning the sky a bright orange, but that didn't make the heat any less unbearable. JC, who had been the leader of their escapade, had fallen behind, obviously fatigued and dehydrated. Tony had tried to offer his jacket for sun protection, but she vehemently refused.

Tony kept on, every so often looking back to make sure JC was all right. He wasn't worried until he looked back to see her sitting down in the sand. "JC, are you okay?" he called to her.

"I'm fine. You keep going. I'll catch up in a minute," she yelled back.

"I'm not leaving you alone," he said, walking back to her.

"Tony, I'm only slowing you down. You need to keep going. If you find help, they can come back for me," she explained, bleary eyed.

"I'm not taking the chance on me forgetting which direction we came from. Now, come on. Let's go," he said reaching his hand down to her.

"No, Tony," she said weakly, slapping his hand away.

"Yes, JC. I'm not gonna abandon you. Give me your hand. We've gotta keep moving."

"No, Tony!" she growled again. "Don't you get it? We are lost out here. We're going in damn circles. We could be heading in the opposite direction, for all I know. We don't stand a chance, not together. You might be able to, but I can't." Any energy she might have had simply drained out by the time she was finished. "I can't do it," she admitted weakly. "I don't have anything left. I can't make it."

"So that's it then? You just give up?" he challenged. "We spent God knows how many months in that hellhole, barely escaped with our lives, and you just want to give up and quit now? What the hell, JC? Yinsen died to help us escape. You're just going to sit here and waste that?"

"Don't you dare patronize me." Her voice was weak, but the glare in her eyes still had the power to burn him. "You think his death means nothing to me? It means everything. I was there. I watched them kill him, and I couldn't do a damn thing to stop it. You think I want to give up? I have a family just like he did. My child is the only thing that has kept me alive, but happy thoughts don't keep you alive forever. I want more than anything to see my son again, but I don't even have the strength to stand anymore. You still have a chance. You can survive. It'll be worth something."

Tony stood there for a moment considering his options; leaving her was not a choice. "Then I'll carry you."

"You can't. Your shoulder is injured, and there is no way you can go the rest of the way with over a hundred pounds on your back. There's no telling how far the base is. The only logical solution is for you to go on without me. Your life is more valuable right now. You're the only one anyone is going to be looking for."

"My life is worth nothing!" he exclaimed, infuriated at her. "All of this will mean nothing if you die. All I have ever done is make weapons that have killed God only knows how many innocent people. You think anyone back home would even mourn me? I have no one, JC. I don't have a family waiting for me to come back. Hell, half the world would probably be ecstatic if I died out here. But you have people waiting for you, family and friends that would give anything to see you home." It galled him to say those words, but they were the truth. There was no one. Maybe Rhodey would care. He wasn't sure about Pepper or Happy. Sure, they might care that their paycheck was gone, but did they actually care about him? He honestly didn't know, and that was more terrifying than anything else.

"Why do you even care?"

"Saving you has been the only good thing I have ever done with my life. And I'll be damned if you try throwing it away by asking me to abandon you now. Now, give me your hand."

"Tony, please, don't. Just do what I say for once in your life without questioning me," she half whined.

"For once in my life, if I obey you, I'll be doing the wrong thing. I can't do that. You're coming with me if I have to drag you, which I would prefer not to do," he said softly, kneeling down to her level. "We're going home together or not at all."

"Who are you, and what did you do with Tony Stark?" she asked with a chuckle.

"He's taking a permanent vacation."

"I hate you so much."

"I know," he said, grabbing her by the arm and hoisting her on to his back. "Hang on tight." He tightly wrapped his arms beneath her legs for support. His shoulder was screaming at him, but he forced the pain back. He had managed to get her this far. He wasn't going to abandon her now.

"If we live through this, I'm going to kill you," she said leaning her head wearily against his shoulder.

"If we live through this, I might just let you," he replied, continuing in the direction she had told him. After that, she didn't complain anymore.

The sun was nearly covered by mountains now, turning the sky to a dusky pink. Tony didn't know how far they had gone, but wherever they were, they were nowhere close to the base. He assumed if they were getting closer, there would be some sort of sign. Tracks, aircraft, noise of any kind, anything to give him a clue.

He went over the next dune, hoping to see something. Without surprise, more desert greeted him. With a heavy sigh, he was about to continue when he heard the sound of propellers behind him. He turned, a sudden sinking feeling in his stomach. Did the terrorists have a helicopter?

Two helicopters flew overhead, American flags stamped to their sides. Tony yelled at them with glee, trying to get their attention. "Oh, my God, we made it. Put me down. I can make it from here," JC said happily.

"Are you sure?"

"You've carried me long enough. I'm walking to that helicopter if it kills me."

He helped her down before saying, "We're going home. Thank God, we're going home." He walked with her and watched as several soldiers jumped out of the closest aircraft. In the lead was Rhodey. When he saw his friend, Tony couldn't help but leave JC and run to meet him. He wasn't really sure where the energy had come from, but he was glad for it.

After sliding down the sandy hill, Tony was finally face-to-face with his friend and after a brief moment of formality, he hugged his comrade, overcome with joy that he was finally getting out of his hell. They both were.

"Come on, JC. Let's go," he said, turning to her. What he saw made his stomach drop. "JC!" In the few moments he had left her side she had fallen to the ground, her body making no movement to pick herself up again.

_Goddammit, no! Not now!_ Tony yelled at himself. Had the reactor given out? Was he too late to save her? No. he wouldn't accept that. He couldn't. He ran to her and pulled her up into his arms. "JC?" He shook her gently, forced her to look up at him. "JC, look at me." Her eyes were unfocused slits, but she was still breathing steadily. That meant the reactor was still working. For now.

"Is she all right?" Rhodey asked as he joined him.

"I don't know. She needs a hospital. Now," Tony said as he gathered her up and carried her to the nearest helicopter. Once they were situated, a medic began looking her over.

"Is she okay?" one of the pilots asked. Tony looked up at him, the man's face etched with worry. Was he a friend? "Doc?" the man demanded when the medic said nothing.

"She's severely dehydrated, Masters. Get her back to base," the medic finally said. Without another word the pilot turned back to his job and pulled the helicopter into the air.

"Is there anything you can do?" Tony asked.

"I'm gonna try to start an IV. Hold this up," the doctor said, handing Tony a bag of fluid. After tying a rubber tourniquet around her left arm he started looking over her elbow, the needle at the ready, but he made no move to insert it. "Dammit, I can't see it."

"See what?"

"Her veins are so constricted." He moved from her elbow down to her hand. "I can't see or feel a damn thing."

"That's never stopped you people from digging around anyway," Tony said dryly. He'd never had that particular experience, but Pepper had complained about it every time she went to give blood.

"You don't understand. I blow the vein, that's it; we're done. She can't afford a mistake," he tried to explain as he moved to the other arm.

"And if you can't find a good vein?"

"I won't have a choice. It'll have to be sub q, but it works too slow. It needs to be IV."

"You realize I have no idea what you just said."

"Tony, just shut up and let him do his job," Rhodey finally said. Tony glared at him, but he had to concede the point. The doctor had to know what he was doing, and Tony had to trust that he would do something to save her. That didn't mean he couldn't be impatient about it. This was his friend, a woman he had fought for, tooth and nail, to save from those monsters.

"There," the doctor exclaimed, pushing her hair away from her temple.

"Seriously?" Tony asked skeptically.

"It's not ideal, but it'll do." The man pressed against her temple to enlarge the vein before poking the needle and releasing the stop on the IV line. "Hold it here," he said, putting Tony's other hand against the needle to hold it place as he reached for tape. After he taped the needle in place he took the bag of fluid from Tony and attached it to the roof of the helicopter.

"Here," Rhodey said, holding out a bottle of water. Tony didn't hesitate, all but ripping the cap off the bottle before taking several long gulps. Some had managed to go down the wrong tube and made him choke, but he didn't care. It was water, good, clean water. He'd never thought something so simple could be so wonderful. Leaning his head back, he savored the sweet taste for another moment before swallowing another mouthful.

JC stirred from her position leaned against his chest and muttered a name just barely audible through the noise of the propellers. "Darren."

"What did she say?" the doctor asked.

Tony looked down at her with a small, wistful smile. It was the same name she had said before she fell into her coma, the one person she loved in the world. "It's her son."

* * *

**AN: Hope ya'll enjoyed the revised chapter 5. Let me know what you think with a review :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_Beep…beep…beep…_

Loud, incessant beeping filled his exhausted his senses. Had that beeping always been there? Of course it was. It had to have been there. Beeping meant life; beeping was good.

Finally opening his eyes, Tony remembered where he was. They had finally made it back to the base safe and sound. After an IV, several bottles of Gatorade, and a good meal, Tony had recovered from their desert escapade.

JC, on the other hand, was still unconscious and hooked to an IV. He had known she was dehydrated, but he hadn't realized how bad her condition was. For the brief moment he had left her to meet the rescue party she had collapsed and remained that way for the past twenty four hours. However, dehydration was the farthest thought from his mind at the time. In that instant, he thought that his worst nightmare-her reactor failing-had occurred. He was almost overjoyed to hear what it was really about.

During the time they had spent at the base, Tony had contacted Pepper and JC's son saying that they would be home soon. After that he stayed with JC. He didn't want her to be alone when she awoke.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he stood up and stretched his tired, cramped muscles. He was about to leave to get some coffee when JC began to stir. "JC?" he asked thinking she was awake.

Her eyes fluttered for a minute before blue came from beneath her weary lids.

"Tony? What…Where are we?" she asked weakly.

"You don't remember, do you? We were found in the desert and brought back to base. You were in pretty bad shape," he explained sitting down next to her bed.

"I do remember that part. I had a killer headache," she said rubbing one of her temples. "What's this?" she asked when she found a band-aid.

"You were so dehydrated they couldn't find a good vein in your arm. They had to stick one in your head for awhile before they could stick your arm."

"She smirked before saying, "I should have known. The Blood Bank has a hard enough time finding one when I'm healthy. Well, it's not like having a needle in my head is anything new."

"You've been stabbing your head with needles? Do we need to have a talk, young lady?" he teased.

"No. I had meningitis when I was six weeks old. In only a few hours I was so bad they couldn't find anything to stick the needle into. They were about to go for my femoral artery when they managed to find one in my head. I don't remember any of it, but from the way my mother described it, it really sucked," she explained.

"Meningitis normally sucks. I should probably leave you to rest now before some doctor comes in here and throws a fit."

"Don't leave just yet," she said. "I need to know if Darren, my son, was contacted. Do you know?" she asked, eyes pleading.

"I took care of it myself. I told him you were safe and would be home as soon as we were able to leave," he reported.

"Thanks, Ton-I mean, Mr. Stark."

"You are allowed to call me by my first name. I'm not your superior, and you don't work for me."

"I know that, but I'm a soldier first. Respect for those I am assigned to is mandatory," she said sounding like a National Guard commercial.

"I'm pretty sure that ended when we were rescued in the desert. You don't owe me anything now, or did you forget our agreement?" he said, his shoulders slumping and averted his gaze.

"We agreed that until we were out, until we were safe, our problems would be put aside. We're not safe until we are standing on American soil. Our agreement still stands," she said.

Tony did his best to suppress his surprise, but even then he was sure it showed to some degree. He had meant only until they were out of terrorist hands, but apparently she had thought otherwise. Either way, he was happy for the extra time. Besides, he didn't feel like arguing with her. They were safe and alive, and for that moment, that was all that mattered.

* * *

Two days later the doctor had given Tony the OK to go home. He had already called Pepper that morning to tell her they would be home as soon as JC was cleared. He was on his way to meet JC when he heard yelling outside of her doctor's door.

"What do you mean you can't approve me for travel? My injury occurred three months ago. What kind of concerns could you possibly have?" he heard JC exclaim.

"Ms. Alwin, please calm yourself. I am merely considering your health," another woman, presumably her doctor, said as calmly as possible.

"What kind of health concerns are there? My injury healed well enough long before now, or we wouldn't have gone running around in some God forsaken desert."

"I am more concerned about whether or not the mechanism keeping the shrapnel from your lungs will continue to function properly. If anything were to happen, there would be no one to help you."

"So send someone with us if you're that worried. And I will not be helpless since the creator will be on the same plane. Besides, you cleared Stark, and he has the exact same thing in his chest. What's the difference?"

Tony's eyes widened in fear. How could they know if anything was wrong with the device? Arc Reactor technology was barely even understood by some of his better scientists. How could this doctor know anything?

"To be frank with you, Lieutenant, that device is experimental technology at best made in a very crude environment. There is a chance for anything to go wrong."

Tony felt offended by this woman's remarks. Sure, he would admit that they did have a grain of truth to them, but didn't she know who he was? The reactor back home hadn't failed, so what would make her think this one would-if she even knew what the thing was.

"Then detain Stark, too. Unless you have a legitimate reason other than this crap to keep me here, I am getting on that plane, I am going home, and I am going to see my son," JC growled.

"I can not let you go. Unfortunately, I am not the only doctor here, and Mr. Stark is not, nor ever was, my patient, but if he was I would detain him, too. It is too risky to send two people up there with experimental technology running vital organs. For all either of you know the technology could fail."

For a minute there was silence in the room leaving Tony to guess the angry expressions on their faces. A moment later JC spoke again, but Tony had put his ear close to the door to make out what she said.

"No one has more reason to hate that man for the things he's done. I have despised for as long as I've known him, but there is one thing I have come to almost admire about him. When he sets himself to do something, he does it. He made these crude, experimental devices to keep us alive. I trust his confidence that these devices will not fail. Now, you are going to sign that release paper, and I am going to walk out of here. Whether or not I have to break a ligament to make you do it is your choice."

There was a rustling of papers before Tony heard footsteps approaching the door. He moved away quickly trying not to get caught by the now easily agitated JC. She stepped out in the hallway and jumped when she saw him.

"Stark, what are you doing here?" she asked looking slightly flustered.

"I was looking for you. Did you talk with the doctor?" he asked trying to play dumb.

"Yes, and she reminded me why I hate coming to hospitals. Doctors are idiots," she said folding a piece of paper and pocketed it.

"Does this mean you won't be going home?" he asked trying to sound genuinely concerned.

"We had a small misunderstanding on the matter, but I managed to convince her otherwise," she answered, a smile creeping across her face.

"You didn't threaten her did you?"

She gasped dramatically before saying, "I would never resort to physical violence. I am appalled that you would even consider thinking that I would resort to such a thing."

He raised his brow and gave her a knowing look. With a repressed smile she led them both down the hall. "Don't worry stark. I did not threaten her."

"Okay, JC. Whatever you say," he said giving up on her. She was never going to admit to it.

Several hours later they were on a plane miles away heading home. With quiet on the plane Tony wanted to break it, this time without fear of JC lashing back at him.

"What are you doing when you get home?" he asked.

"I'm gonna see my son, and if he hasn't been keeping up on his school work, I'm gonna kick his butt," she said reading the magazine she had brought aboard.

"That's nice to say about someone who's probably been worried sick about you," he said.

"This hasn't been the first time I was deployed, hired or otherwise sent out on a mission and put in peril. We made an agreement when he was old enough to understand. I had a dangerous job, but he was able to do more than sit and worry about me. That's what husbands are for."

"Is that why you divorced your husband? He didn't care?" Tony asked. He figured he was treading on thin ice, but he was feeling gutsy.

She hesitated before answering, "He cared about his son, but he showed it the wrong way. That was why we split up. You had nothing to do with it."

"Why would you think I thought I was responsible?"

"You asked if it was because he didn't care and you remember I had a change of name since we last met. This along with the fact that Japan was my last job before this, one can only presume you take responsibility since it was you that I was assigned to."

"Well…I…um…" he didn't know how to respond. He wasn't sure if he genuinely cared about her marital relationship, but he knew he was going to have a few words with the guy if he didn't care about his wife doing the things she did.

"What grade is your son in anyway?" he asked changing the subject.

"He's a junior this year, he should be graduating early. He's top of his class, very smart, but very lazy. He barely tries anymore even though I've gotten him into advanced classes, even a few college courses. Nothing seems to work," she said sounding a bit exasperated.

"So, is he failing, or is he passing with honors?" Tony asked a bit confused.

"He's passing all right, and it really annoys me. I'll admit, I was no Einstein, but I was top of my class, too. I had to work hard for it, never graduated early, took a few AP courses, but I was still an average kid that had to crack open a book and actually read it to learn the information. He just barely skims it and can summarize in detail what he was supposed to learn. Kinda reminds me of you a bit," she said finally looking at him.

"I see why that annoys you even more. So, do you plan to do anything about it?" Tony asked unsure of what else he could say.

"I don't know if there's much else I can do. He wants the harder work just to stay challenged, but he doesn't want to leave high school to do it. I can't blame him, but I just don't want to see him--I'm sorry. I'm probably boring you. I try not to go into mom-mode, but I can't help it sometimes. I'll just shut up now."

"No, it's all right. I don't mind. It makes you finally sound like a normal person for a change."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked cocking her brow.

"Well," Tony began being careful what he said. "Most of the time you always talk like you're part of some recruiting commercial or something like that, always talking about duty and such. You rarely talk about your home or family or anything else for that matter. It's nice to hear you talk about something else for a change."

She turned away and seemed to be in thought for a moment. "That's not entirely true. I talked about my father back in the cave," she countered.

"You only mentioned him once to say that he made you give up backgammon. That was it. That barely counts."

"Well, there's not much more to my family than that. My dad died when I was thirteen and mom just before I cam here, and my brother…well, I gave up on him when I was twelve. I disowned him and never spoke to him after he left home. I know it hurt my mother, but what he did to me was unforgiveable. She never knew and neither did dad, but they both noticed when we grew further apart, more quarrelsome. That's about it for my family. Nothing real interesting there," she explained.

"What happened between you two? You and your brother I mean," he asked curious.

"What is this? A psychiatric session? It was personal, and I don't like to think about it, so let's drop it. Now, if you don't mind terribly, I am going to take a nap. Wake me when we get ready to land," she said leaning back and closing her eyes.

Tony sat back and did the same when he figured there was nothing else he was going to get out of her. The only thing he was sorry for was that the last few hours they would be friendly to each other would be spent asleep.

* * *

At nearly two 'o clock in the afternoon their plane finally landed in California at Edward's Air Force Base without incident. After three long months Tony was finally coming home. Tony, accompanied by Rhodes, and JC made their way down the ramp as it opened on the tarmac. At the bottom Pepper and Happy could be seen with the Phantom behind them. Next to them stood a boy with auburn hair wearing jeans and a loose hoodie. There was no mistake that it was JC's son; he looked like her, stood like her, and probably acted like her, too.

As soon as the ramp was completely lowered JC ran toward him and embraced him in a long awaited tearful reunion. Tony watched them as Rhodey helped him down the ramp. An ambulance and gurney awaited him, but he turned them away. He had made it through hell and back without them, and he wasn't about to use them now that he was home.

Relieved that he was finally standing on U.S. soil he walked towards his assistant wanting nothing more than to hug her and Happy. They were his family and right now they both looked like hell from worrying over him. It made him wonder if he looked like that whenever he worried about JC.

"Your eyes are red," he said to Pepper. "Few tears for your long lost boss?" he said trying to keep it light.

"Tears of joy," she answered. "I hate job hunting."

"Yeah. Vacation's over," he said and headed for the car. He had work to do, and he couldn't do it standing here. He stole one more look before getting into the car to see JC about to get in the driver seat.

"Hey, JC. Give me about five minutes before you leave," he teased.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I've seen your driving before. That's the scariest thing I've ever seen," he joked.

She glared at him for a moment before promptly sticking her tongue out at him and got into her car. He smiled at her before doing the same.

"Happy, please take us to the hospital-"

"No," he said firmly.

"What?" Pepper asked obviously surprised. "Tony, you need to go to a hospital. A doctor needs to look at you."

"I have been in captivity for three months. There are two things I _want_ to do. First, I want an American cheeseburger, and two--"

"Yeah, that's not going to happen."

"Not what you think," he said knowing what she was thinking. Did he really speak to her like that so often? "I want a Press Conference."

"A Press Conference? What for?" she asked.

"Hogan, drive. Cheeseburger first."

* * *

**AN: Sorry for taking so long with this update. The next one should come a great deal faster. Thanks to all my loyal readers and betas. You guys make this possible.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

It had been two days since Tony had returned, and he was still hiding out in the basement of his house, which was converted into his personal workshop. He didn't really consider it hiding, but Stane had ordered him to lay low since his dramatic announcement at the Press Conference. This also gave him time to finish making the replacement reactors for him and JC. He had just finished his, and had Pepper install it. He made a mental note not to let her do the same with JC's. He could survive without the spare magnet in his chest, but JC would need it in case something ever did manage to go wrong.

With the final pieces in place, all that was left was to find where JC lived. That was the easiest part. The hardest part was trying to convince her to come over so he could give it to her without losing an appendage for not telling her sooner. He didn't have any other options at this point, so he decided to suck it up and get it done.

Surprisingly enough, she wasn't too far away from him. He found her on the other side of town, the one place he never expected to find her. He thought she would have tried to get as far away from him as possible, like Cambodia.

That evening he finally got the reactor finished and headed for JC's home. Along the way he tried to come up with something convincing to say to her. "If I said it was necessary to lie to you would you still try to kill me? No, I can't say that. She'll try to punch me on sight if I say that. There must be something I can say that won't provoke her," he said to himself as he drove.

He pulled up in front of her house and was immediately surprised. Her home looked to be two stories high painted crème with forest green trim. In the front of the house was a flower plot filled with an assortment of various plants that even he did not recognize. He never took her for a plant lover, let alone an exotic one. What was next? A haunted house in the basement?

Pushing aside any remaining fear in his system, he left his car and walked up to the front door. As he approached the door he could them running around the house doing who knew what. Taking a deep breath he knocked on the door and waited. A few moments later he heard the voice of boy yelling, "I'll get it, Mom!"

The door opened to reveal JC's son, and before Tony could even get a word out, the door was shut in his face. "Okay," he said to himself.

From behind the door he heard the boy say to his mother, "It was just a stupid salesman, mom."

Gaping, Tony began knocking on the door again. He could hear JC asking what was with the constant knocking and her son lying about him. Now this kid was making him mad. He knocked more fervently, hoping to get her attention. He heard her say, "Okay, Darren, here's how you take care of these more determined guys. You go up to them, scare the living crap out of them, then laugh. I'll show you with him."

The next moment the door was open and a very agitated looking JC was at the threshold. Tony cringed for a moment before her features relaxed to a surprised look. "Tony? What are you…Darren!" she suddenly exclaimed, turning to her son.

"Yes, ma'am?" he answered, knowing he was caught.

"You want to explain this to me? Did you shut the door in his face?" she demanded.

"Well, I…um…" he answered.

JC gave a sigh before turning back to Tony. "What is it you need?"

"Can I talk to you? In private?" he asked not wanting to bring the subject up in front of Darren.

"I suppose, if you make it quick. Come on. You can come to my studio," she said, uneasy, before leading him inside. He followed her through the house to the back of the main level. Upon entering her studio, he was astonished. Various pieces of art, ranging from paintings to sketches to pottery, were spread throughout the room. If there was any project that could be done, it was displayed in the room.

"Wow. I never realized you were so good at this kind of stuff. Does any of it ever sell?" he observed as he looked over several pieces. This was at least better than finding a haunted house in the basement.

"A few have, but not too many. I'm trying to get a few more to go, but so far I haven't had much luck," she said leaning against a nearby counter and crossing her arms over her chest.

"I'm surprised. This is really good. What's this?" he asked looking at a pot that was still on the turntable. Next to it was a needle attached to a machine that looked like it was meant to scrape across the side to make indents in the still semi-wet clay.

"It's an experiment I'm trying out. I've had a few successes, but it's still in the rough stages," she said, moving from her spot to put away some of her supplies that were spread out across the counter top.

"What does it do?" he asked, tinkering around with the machine. It turned on and began to spin the pot while the needle scraped across the side of it.

"It's meant to - what are you doing!? What have you done?" she exclaimed angrily.

"I don't know. What did I do? It's not ruined, is it?" he asked hurriedly as he backed away from the contraption.

"It is now. You've ruined the recording," she said, giving up on it and just letting it run.

"Recording? You turned the pot into a recording device? Like the old records? What made you want to do that? I thought this kind of thing didn't work," he said.

"I've been working on it for a long time to get it right. I observed the old vinyls and the original way sound was recorded and that blah blah. I almost had it perfect with this one, but now you've recorded our voices with the original recording. It's worthless now if it manages to work."

"I'm really sorry. I didn't realize-"

"Now, what did you come here for?" she interrupted exasperated. She probably didn't want to give him the opportunity to break something else.

"I don't know quite how to explain this very well without upsetting you," he began. "Listen, your life is in danger if we don't get you to back to my house."

"Slow down for just a second. What do you mean? You said that the rectors would keep working."

"You see, about that…there was a small problem when I was making the two reactors. There wasn't enough palladium to completely make both of them, so I had to cut one of them short," he explained and looked to her to gauge her reaction. She didn't seem upset yet, so he decided it should be safe enough to continue. "In order to run the suit effectively and safely, it was necessary that mine be complete, leaving yours only partially incomplete. It was the only way to-"

"Hold it right there," she interrupted. "You're telling me that you put me in danger to save yourself? I should have thought you would do something like this. You lied to me."

"Let me explain. It had nothing to do with my wellbeing over yours. I was trying to make sure we all got out safely, and the only way to do that was to complete the one that would be running the suit. There was no other safe option. I know I sort of lied to you, but with this one you won't have to worry about it. I just need you to come over for a few-"

"No," she interrupted sternly. "I don't want to have anything more to do with you, Tony. I thought I could trust you. Not a lot of trust, but I thought I could at least believe you for something as important as this. Get out of here and don't come back, or I swear you will regret the day you were born."

"JC, please. I know what I did was wrong, and I will let you kill me later if you still want to, but you're in a lot of danger right now," he said, his own temper rising. "That reactor in you could fail at any minute. After that, you'll have about fifteen minutes left to live. That's not enough time for either of us to get to each other so I can give it to you. Now, will you please just-"

"Leave!" she exclaimed, pointing at the door.

They stood there glaring at each other for a minute before Tony conceded with a loud huff. "Just think about it. If you won't do it for yourself, you could at least do it for Darren. I don't think he wants to go through the rest of his life with out a mother," he ground out, walking back to his car.

He drove back home, frustration, anger, and guilt being his only thoughts. Yes, he regretted not telling her the truth, and he deserved her anger at him, but that was no reason for her to continue putting herself in danger by not accepting the new reactor. He would have been just fine if she hated him forever if she had only taken the reactor. That only left him to continue what he had started earlier that day.

* * *

The next afternoon, Tony was hard at work in his shop trying to get the design correct before he started building it. He was in the middle of getting the boots right a knock was heard at the door. When the knocking did not stop, Tony asked, "Jarvis, where is Pepper?"

"She left half an hour ago to run personal errands. Do you not recall giving her such permission?" the electronic, British voice answered.

"Oh yeah, that's right. Who's at the door?"

"I am uncertain, sir. They are wearing a hat, making it difficult to discern an identity," the AI reported.

There was another knock on the door, which meant they weren't going away anytime soon. "All right, all right, I'm coming," he called, after saving the program and powering it down. He went upstairs, ready to tell whoever it was to go away until he opened the door. "What are you doing here?" he asked, surprised at who had come.

"Look, can we make this quick. I have to be somewhere in an hour and I still have other things to do today," she said nervously.

"What made you change your mind?"

"Look, I thought about what you said, okay? You were right about Darren, and that's all I'll admit to. I'm still pissed off that you lied to me," she growled, jabbing a finger in his face.

"Okay, fair enough. I deserve that," he said putting his hands up in defeat. "Come in. The shop is in the basement," he said leading her inside.

He opened the door to the shop and led her over to the chair he had used before which he had laid out flat for her. "Okay, take your shirt off. I'm not looking," he said turning around and covering his eyes with one hand.

A few minutes later she gave the okay for him to turn around, and he found her lying down on the makeshift table. "Will you just hurry up? I really don't like you being in the room with me like this."

"Don't worry. It should only take five minutes," he explained grabbing the necessary tools and, of course, the reactor. "I'm warning you now, this may hurt a bit when the new one gets plugged in. Then again, it might not."

"Joyous," she replied sarcastically.

"Just be glad it's me doing this instead of Pepper," he said as he began to remove the reactor.

"I almost prefer her," she muttered.

"No, you don't. She just about killed me when she was helping me," he said, putting it aside and grabbing the new one. "This might hurt when I attach it to the base plate, so bear with me."

"When you say it will hurt, do you mean a lot or a litt - oww!" she yelped. "A little warning next time would be nice!"

"Sorry, but it was now or never, and I figured it would be better if you were distracted from it," he answered sheepishly.

"You are lucky I can't stand up right now, or I would hand you your teeth," she threatened.

"Lucky me. I'll just leave the room now," he said, and quickly walked upstairs to give her some privacy.

A few minutes later, she came back upstairs fully dressed. "Thanks, Tony. I should be going now," she said, and headed for the door.

"Well, wait just a second. Don't leave yet," he called from his spot on the couch.

"Tony, I told you already that I have things to do today. I really have to-"

"Looking for a job?" he interrupted bluntly.

"What? How did you…Are you watching me or something?"

"No. I had to look you up online to find your address and there were a few…things that came up with it. I'm sorry."

She stared down at her feet for a moment before saying, "I guess it wasn't going to be too long before people heard about my injury. I don't know if someone saw it or just slip of the tongue, but you already know all my clients gave me up. Too much of a liability some said. Unreliable for others. Either way, I have to get going. I have a buyer for one of my pieces that I have to go meet with in a few minutes, so-"

"I need your help."

She seemed taken aback for a moment before asking, "What could you possibly need my help doing? Aren't you supposed to be some kind of super genius? And what about that friend of yours Colonel Rhodes? You two seemed to be really close."

"He kind of shot me down. He said I must be suffering from PTS, but I'm not. I'm trying to do something good without the interference of my company or the military, but I could use some help with it. No one else will help me. You're my last option."

"Tony, you know where I stand right now. If things were different with my job, I might be more willing to help, but I have to think about how I'm going to provide for Darren. I saved up some from my previous jobs, but that isn't go last forever. He has college and who knows what else to pay-"

"I have a plan, if you're willing," he interrupted for the final time.

"I'm listening."

"I'm going to be doing some pretty dangerous stuff over the next week or so, and I could use some help around to make sure I don't kill myself. We both win this way. You get a job; I get someone to make sure I get to see the project finished. What do you say?" he proposed.

"I guess that might work. What exactly would I do?" she asked. "I don't normally work in labs or whatever you'll be doing. Normally there's someone I have to be looking out for because I'm supposed to shoot them or something like that. Obviously I can't do that."

"You can be an extra set of hands. Dummy and Butterfingers aren't always very helpful when it comes to that kind of thing."

She cocked a brow at him. "Do I want to know why you're calling people who help you such names?"

"They're not people. They were just a science project that turned out to create very stupid robots. Anyway, will you help me, or would you rather continue job hunting for a minimum wage job at the nearest Burger King?"

"I don't know, Tony," she said nervously. "You know how much Darren hates you. I'm gonna have to think this for awhile. When do you need an answer?"

"I was kind of hoping you would accept and start today," he answered.

"Look, let me take care of one thing, and I'll be back in an hour with my decision. Can you wait that long?"

"I'll try not to kill myself until then," he joked.

"Good. I'd hate to lose a possible employer before I even start work," she said with a smile.

At that, Tony felt a spark of hope. If he was able to work with her then maybe, just maybe, it was a step toward forgiveness.

* * *

**AN: I know this was a bit shorter chapter, but things are about to get good, and this allowed me to make another update. Reviews are always welcome since they make me write faster! All you guys are great!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"Tony, are you sure about this? I don't think that-"

"Who is the super genius here?" he interrupted. JC had been over for several hours, helping him with the boots and finding some way to comment on everything. Now she was trying to convince him he had something wrong with power output for the boots.

"In your own little world, that would be you, but I'm telling you that something bad will happen. Those boosters are meant for missiles several times your size that are supposed to fly long distances. Don't you think ten percent is a little much to test in the garage?" she questioned.

"Have you ever been an expert with missiles, aeronautics, or anything else pertaining to this test?" he asked.

She crossed her arms and said with a huff, "No, but it doesn't-"

"There you go. Let's just continue. Roll cameras. Dummy is on fire safety in case something goes wrong. We're gonna start off nice and easy with ten percent. In three…two…one." He pressed the ignition button in his hand, and a split second later he was smashed against the roof and on the floor behind his tool chest.

"Tony!" JC yelped as Dummy began to extinguish him.

He gave a loud groan as his head began to throb from the force of his flight. "Tony, are you okay?" she asked as ran over to him and helped him to a sitting position. "Does anything feel broken?"

"Just my pride," he groaned.

"Good. Now do you want to listen to me every once in awhile?" she asked.

"Okay, so I should have listened that time, but how was I supposed to know that would happen?" he admitted.

"You're the genius here. It doesn't take an expert to figure out weight to power ratios for actual flight, but when you factor in testing space, ten percent sends you through the roof. Or at least attempt to break your neck in the process. I did try to warn you not to do it in the garage," she explained.

He glared at her knowing he should have thought of that but not wanting to admit it. "Fine. Next time we take it down. And you," he declared pointing a finger at Dummy. "Don't douse me when I'm not on fire."

The robot gave a low whine and lowered itself like a dog trying to lower its head when it knows it in trouble. "Let's go back to the drawing board, but first I need something from you."

"Let me guess. Bring about ten Tylenol and coffee?" she answered.

"No, make it only five for now, and help me got out of these things," he said and began to take off the boots.

She helped him remove the bulky items before going upstairs to get his Tylenol while he went to figure out another problem with flight. JC had been right about too much power for their small testing space, but something else hadn't felt right while he was hurtling through the air. It felt unstable, like he was going to fall over even on a lower setting.

"What to do, what to do," he mused to himself. He pulled up the schematics for the armor and gave it a look over. There wasn't much he could do to the boots from their current position. They had already been made as small and compact as possible from their original design, but there wasn't much that could be added to make them anymore stable.

"Here you go," JC said, handing him the pain reliever and coffee.

"Thanks," he said, and downed the pills.

"You look confused. What's wrong?" she asked as she leaned against one of the counters.

"I'm at a loss. I don't know what to change or add on to make it easier to control. It was like when I was flying in the desert. It was all up until I started falling. There must be something I'm missing," he pondered as he stared at the digital drawing.

"I don't know how to help you there. What do you do whenever you come to a problem like this at work?" she asked trying to be of some help.

"Leaving helps. So does drinking," he answered.

"Well, you're not drinking while I'm here. I don't feel like trying to drag your drunken butt upstairs to hose you down," she said dryly.

"You'd drag me upstairs and dump me in the shower? That's mean."

"I didn't say I'd dump you in the shower. I was just gonna take you outside and squirt you with the hose. Trust me. I think the pistol would work real nice," she corrected with a wry smile.

"No thanks. I think I'll just stick with coffee," he answered, a bit subdued.

"I figured you would. Whenever I have a problem, I just walk away and distract myself from it. Stan always finds the answer somewhere," she said and went to turn on the TV.

"Stan? Who's Stan and why do you have him doing your work?"

"It's a psychology thing. It doesn't matter what you call it, but Stan is the little guy in my head that finds information that I know is there but can't find it. It actually works if you give it a try," she said as she flipped through the channels.

"You just tell it to go find it and poof it's there? That sounds too simple," Tony said skeptically.

"It doesn't work that fast. Just give it some time and the little guy in your head will figure it out eventually. Man, I hate those guys," she said staring at the TV.

Tony looked up to see what she was watching to see several surfers riding the waves. "Why? It's not like they're doing anything bad," Tony commented before turning back to his work.

"They make it look so easy to do. Just stand on a board, wave your arms around every once in awhile and you can stay on," she said, exaggerating with her arms.

"They're not waving them around. It's for balance. They can't stay up if they…don't," Tony said as an idea formed in his head.

"Tony?"

"I got it! It's perfect! Why didn't I think of it sooner? It's so simple!" he exclaimed and started inputting information to his computer.

"Tony, what are you thinking?" JC questioned as she walked over to his spot.

"The surfers can't stay up without using their arms for balance, right? The board is too unstable other wise, right?" he pointed out.

"Okay, but I don't see how that helps you. You can't just stick your hands out on those things and expect it to help you. Flying and surfing are two different things."

"I know that, but what about flight stabilizers?" he suggested.

"Where are you going to get those from, and how are they helpful?"

"The Jericho missile uses stabilizer technology to keep it on course just because of its size and the amount of fire power it has to deliver. If I were to take those stabilizers and use them on my hands, that might be enough to keep me from doing a freefall with the slightest motion," he explained as he continued to type in information.

"You got all that from watching surfing?" she asked sounding a bit impressed.

"Well, I did have help from Bob," he pointed out.

"Bob? Okay, Tony. You could have at least given the guy a better name than Bob," she muttered.

"I will call the little guy in my head whatever I feel like." She stifled a giggle when he said this before returning to her serious face.

"So, you're basically going to put boosters on your hands and hope that they keep you stable. Sounds like a great plan," she said sarcastically.

"Why don't you go sit somewhere and watch TV? This is very precise stuff I'm working with."

"Tony," she said in a low voice. "I did not come here to sit and watch TV. I did not ask for charity. If you brought me here just for-"

"No," he interrupted knowing where this was headed. "You will be helping, but for this part I work alone. It's all equations and variables and a bunch of other stuff that doesn't make sense to anyone. I swear I didn't bring you here just to sit and watch. You know me better than that."

She gave him a final glare before leaning back on the desk. "I'll take your word for now, but if I find out this was charity, I will leave. I guarantee that. I'd rather take my chances alone."

"I know that," he said calmly. "I remember from when we were in the cave. You never seemed to stop working once you got started, never taking help even if you did need it. I wouldn't do something like that to you."

She stared at him the same way she had in the cave the day they escaped. It made him feel like a stranger because that was how she looked at him. It was as if she was looking at him for the first time. He hoped it was a good thing, but he still wasn't completely sure.

"I suppose so. How long do you think that thing will take?"

He looked over the intended design before saying, "I don't know. It should only be about a day or so. Hey, weren't you supposed to be somewhere right now?"

She looked at the watch on her wrist and cursed. "I'm late! Darren is going to kill me!" she exclaimed as she bustled about looking for her keys.

"Last time I checked, you were the parent, and he was the child. I don't think he's allowed to kill you."

"We'll discuss this later. School is almost out, and I have to get across town," she huffed as she ran upstairs with Tony following swiftly behind.

"There are these new inventions called a car and driver's license. I'm not sure if your son has heard of them, but he can use those. There's also the bus. Does he not like those options?"

"He has a boundary exemption, so he can't ride the bus, and I don't want him riding the city bus. There are too many weirdos in this town for that. And don't even think of letting him drive. I tried teaching him, and he nearly drove us through a light pole. Apparently brake for him means put your foot as hard against the gas pedal as possible."

"Were you yelling at him?" Tony asked remembering driver's education.

"I was when he tried to kill us, but no, I did not yell at him before that. I hated my mother doing that, so I decided not to do that to any children I had. Now if you will excuse me, I have to go," she said hurriedly and ran out the door. He shrugged not really knowing of anything else that could be done before going to check on Pepper.

"Hey, Pepper," he greeted.

"I heard crashing downstairs. Are you alright?" she asked with genuine concern.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. Just a slight miscalculation was all. It's nothing you need to worry about," he said to ease her. She was so worried about him ever since he had come back.

"Well, as long you didn't hurt yourself. What are you two doing down there anyways?"

"It's just a project. Nothing special," he answered dryly.

"Alright then. I left something at the office. Do you need anything while I'm out?" she asked, shutting down her laptop.

"I'm good. Have fun," he said before turning and heading back downstairs.

"All right. Just don't kill yourself before one of us gets back," she called after him.

"Yes, mother," he threw over his shoulder. He was going to be busy enough with getting the design right to find anything dangerous to do.

* * *

Several days later one stabilizer had been finished and was ready to be tested. JC watched as Tony attached the device to his arm and she helped secure it there. The whole time music blared, so neither heard when Pepper walked in.

"I've been buzzing. Haven't you heard?" she asked as she came up to them, a package wrapped in brown paper and a mug of coffee in one hand. "Obadiah is here," she reported.

"What?" he said distractedly. "Yeah, I'll be up in a minute," he said, lifting the device from its stand.

"I thought you were done making weapons?" Pepper noted a she eyed the stabilizer.

"He is. It's a flight stabilizer," JC informed her.

"See?" he said as he pressed the power button. "It's perfectly harmless." He held up is arm and fired the stabilizer which sent him flying against the wall.

JC winced as Pepper covered her ears. "I didn't expect that," Tony groaned from his spot on the floor.

"Well, you two have fun with your…_harmless_ stabilizer," Pepper said skeptically before going back upstairs.

"You okay?" JC asked, looking down at his crumpled form, lending out a hand.

"Just perfect," he said sarcastically as he picked himself up and set the device back in its holder.

"Well, I had better get home, and you should get upstairs before both Pepper and Mr. Stane come down here looking for you," she said as she freed him from the device.

"Why don't you stick around for a little while longer? Stane should only take like two minutes, and I want to try the stabilizers with the boots," he begged with puppy dog eyes.

She eyed him strangely before cocking her brow and conceding. "All right, Tony. I guess I'll stick around for a little while longer. It's a weekend, so it'll be okay if I get back late," she said, and ushered him upstairs.

"Great! I'll just get rid of Stane, and we can get back to work," he said excitedly and ran up the stairs two at a time. As they rounded the corner, the sound of the grand piano could be heard playing a somber tune.

"How was it?" Tony asked as he eyed a box of pizza. No answer came. "That bad, huh?" he said, and helped himself to the pizza.

"Just because I brought back pizza from New York doesn't mean it went bad," Stane said, continuing his music.

"Sure it doesn't," Tony said disbelievingly as he bit into a slice.

"It would have gone better if you had been there," Stane commented as he came over to the table and sat down next to Tony.

"Nope. You told me to lie low, so I'm lying low."

"Yeah, in public, the press. This was a Board of Director's meeting."

"This was a Board of Directors meeting?" Tony asked in feign shock. Stane rolled his eyes at him as Tony looked at him skeptically, wondering what had gone wrong.

"Tony, this really isn't a conversation for everyone," Stane said sparing a glance over at JC. Tony gave him a disapproving glare and was about to say something when JC spoke up.

"It's cool. I've gotta go clean up your mess down there anyways," JC said graciously, and went back downstairs.

"That was subtle," Tony said half disgustedly to Stane.

"Tony, she's not your business partner. She's not your P.A. She's your bodyguard, and it's none of her business about what goes on with the company," Stane said.

"Obi, half the country all ready knows about what's going on with the company. What's one more? And she's not just my bodyguard. She happens to be a good friend."

"Calm down, Tony. There are more important matters at hand. The board is claiming posttraumatic stress. They're filing an injunction."

"What?" Tony exclaimed.

"They want to lock you out," Stane finished.

"Why? Because the stocks dropped forty points? We knew that was going to happen," Tony pointed out.

"Fifty six and a half," Pepper corrected from her spot on the couch.

"It doesn't matter!" Tony exclaimed. "We own the controlling interests."

"The board has rights, too. They think that you and your new direction are not in the company's best interest," Obadiah explained.

"I'm being responsible. That's a new direction for me? I mean me on my company's behalf. This is crazy," he said and headed downstairs.

"Tony," Obadiah called.

"Good night, Obi," Tony said over his shoulder.

As he re-entered the workshop, he found JC finishing picking up everything he had knocked over from the stabilizer test. "Hey," he greeted her.

"How did it go?" she asked.

"Not well. I'm sorry about Obi. You didn't have to-"

"Tony," she interrupted. "It's okay. It's not the first time I've been kicked out of a room. There are people with worse manners than Obadiah Stane. Now, what do you say we hurry up and get to that test with the boots?" she offered with a smile.

Happy with the change of subject, Tony grabbed the boots and began to hook them up to his reactor.

"Hey, Tony, if this thing works and you actually get the whole suit to function properly, what are you going to do with it?" JC asked as she brought over the stabilizer pieces.

"I don't really know. I figured on finding out how my weapons ended up in terrorist hands and destroying them if I can," he answered.

She paused for a moment contemplating on his answer before speaking. "Just be careful with that. Sometimes taking things into your own hands can cause more harm than good."

He thought about her words as he continued to put the stabilizers on. Did he honestly think that what he was doing would make a difference? It had to count for something. With one less Iron Monger out there, maybe some good could come out of it. Maybe.

"All right, let's test this out. Dummy is still on fire safety. If you douse me again and I'm not on fire, I'm donating you to a city college," he said pointing a finger at the robot, which then lowered his nozzle like a berated dog. "Let's start it out nice and easy at one percent. In three…two…one."

His thrusters flared to life levitating him about two feet off the ground. "Tony, it works," JC breathed. "You did it."

Satisfied with the first part of the test, he killed power and dropped back down. Dummy promptly started following him with the nozzle just in case.

"Please don't follow me around with it either. I feel like I'm going to spontaneously combust. Just stand down and if something happens, then come in," he ordered the robot. JC stifled several chuckles. "Hey, it's not funny," he said pointing a finger at her.

"Of course not. It's perfectly natural to talk to your robots," she teased holding back several more giggles.

"Ha, ha, ha. You think you're so funny. Let' take up a notch," he said and kicked up the power. This time he went almost to the ceiling and hovered.

"Tony, be careful. You could break your neck if you fall from there," JC chided.

"I've done worse," he said and started moving his hands, testing out his range of motion. He began to move about the room going from one spot to the other before he eventually made it to his very expensive cars. "This is exactly where I don't want to be. Yikes!" he said as his thrusters moved over the cars. He moved away from the cars and began heading for his desk that had been covered with papers that were now flying about. He let out a grunt before putting his hands in front of him, sending him backwards. He let out a nervous noise before saying, "It could be worse. We're fine."

"Tony, maybe you should come down now before you ruin something," JC suggested nervously.

"Okay, I'm coming in," he said, hovering over the spot that he had taken off from. Slowly, he lowered himself before killing power and dropping to the floor. Dummy looked up for a moment, but was immediately reprimanded by his creator. Taking look from Butterfingers, who had been filming, to JC, Tony confidently stated, "Yeah. I can fly."

"Very well done, Tony. Now, let's call it a night," JC said with a small yawn.

"Don't you want to stick around for the big flight?"

She eyed him skeptically. "What big flight?"

"You can't honestly expect me to settle for that? Not when I'm so close to finishing this thing," he pleaded.

"Tony, you could get yourself killed trying something like that. You nearly wrecked the shop," JC pointed out.

"Yeah, but it's like you said. This area is too small to test this thing out."

JC took on a look of indecisiveness, considering whether or not she wanted to stick around for it. Tony truly hoped that she would. This was the big moment, and he wanted her, the one who had been crazy enough to help him, to be there to experience it with him. She looked up into his eyes and said, "As your bodyguard, I can not let you do something so reckless as to risk your life with this experiment."

Tony's face fell at her answer. She could ground him if she truly wanted to. Tony had no doubt of that. "As your friend, though," she sighed. "I'm willing to make this one exception, if," she emphasized when she saw his face light up like a kid at Christmas. "If you promise not to do anything truly stupid. Are we agreed?" she offered.

"I promise," he answered quickly. "Thank you, JC," he said, and gave her a big hug.

"Tony," she wheezed. "You're cutting off my air supply."

"Oops, sorry," he apologized sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"I'm going to regret this."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

"Tony, are you sure about this? Maybe we should wait until-"

"Until when? We can't do it in the daytime unless you want everyone to see me," he pointed out.

"You think no one will notice a pair of rockets flying through the air attached to your feet at night? I'm not worried about people seeing you. I'm worried that something will go wrong and you start plummeting several hundred feet to the ground to become street pizza or worse, the ocean where no one will find your body," she explained.

"JC," he said gripping her shoulders in his metal covered hands. "It's going to be fine. You've seen the tests yourself. The boots aren't going to give out. Nothing bad is going to happen. Just relax, okay?" he tried to reassure her.

"I already agreed to it, but that doesn't mean I like it." She heaved a sigh of frustration before saying, "Let's just get on with this."

He released her and went for the face piece of the helmet. "Jarvis, you there?" he asked the AI.

"At your service, sir," the British accented voice responded.

"Engage heads up display," he commanded as he attached the piece.

"Check."

"Import all preferences from home interface."

"Will do, sir." As he let the AI do its job he went over to the computer and typed in several instructions. The three monitors began to light up with three different images.

"What do you say?" he asked from Jarvis.

"I have indeed been uploaded. We are online and ready," Jarvis reported.

"Start the virtual walk around," he ordered.

"Importing preferences and calibrating virtual environment."

"Check on control surfaces."

"As you wish." Tony stepped away from the computer as every movable surface of the suit lifted and turned with Jarvis's tests.

"Okay, here's how this is going to work," he stated, picking up an ear piece. "These three screens show the HUD, ATC, and GPS for the suit. This will keep us in contact," he added, handing her the ear piece.

"Whenever you're ready," she answered taking it and putting it in her ear.

"Test complete. Preparing to power down and begin diagnostics."

"Yeah, tell you what, do a weather and ATC check. Start listening in on ground control."

"Sir, there are still terabytes of calculations needed before an actual flight is attem-"

"Jarvis," Tony said sternly. "Sometimes you gotta run before you can walk. Ready JC?"

"Fire away," she responded.

"Okay, in three, two, one." The rockets engaged and he hovered for several seconds before angling his body and shooting out of the garage into the sky with a loud whoop. With several more shouts of glee JC's voice came over the intercom.

"Hey, banshee, you might want to keep the yelling down to a minimum. You're not the only one who can hear it," she chided.

"Sorry, JC. I wish you could be here right now. This feels like a dream," he breathed.

"Thanks but no. Me and heights don't do well."

"Wait a second. You're in the air force and go flying around in helicopters, but you hate heights? How does that work out?" he asked a bit confused.

"I don't fly. My friend does all the flying, and it scares the crap out of me every time. His co-pilot seat has indents from my nails," she explained.

"And yet you kept going back?"

"The thrill was exciting, I must admit. Though I don't think I could do what you're doing. Watching the HUD is enough for me," she replied, a smile creeping into her voice.

"You should try it at some point. It wouldn't be too hard to arrange," he offered.

"As tempting as that sounds, I would never want to do what you're doing."

He chuckled at her and said, "Don't diss it 'till you try it."

"Tony, if the world followed your reasoning, more people would have addictions to every known substance."

"Hey," he interjected. "I didn't say it worked for everything."

"Right," she drawled, unconvinced. "Just keep your eyes on the sky. It looks like the carnival is running tonight. You might want to keep your distance."

"I see it, mother," he heaved as he zoomed in on the Ferris wheel.

"Tony," she warned.

"I know. You really don't like this," he said as he zoomed in on one of the children taking a ride on the wheel. They both watched as he licked his ice cream until he licked it right off its cone. They snickered at the boy and got back on track.

"Let's see what this thing can do. Jarvis, what's the SR-71's record?" he asked.

"The highest record for fixed wing flight is 85,000 feet," the computer replied.

Tony smirked to himself and commented, "Records are made to be broken."

"Tony," JC responded, the sound of a chair scraping against the floor. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm just testing the suit," he answered.

"Sir, there is a fatal amount of ice forming," Jarvis reported.

"Keep going," Tony strained as he pushed farther.

"Tony," JC exclaimed. "Fatal means death. Pull back now."

"I can make it," he urged.

"Tony, stop. Now!" was the last thing that Tony heard her yell before all the power cut out in the suit and he began to free fall to the ground. He gave a loud yelp before regaining what little composure he could.

"Jarvis, deploy flaps," he ordered trying to keep calm. When no answer came, he became nervous. "Jarvis?" he called out to the AI. "Come on, we gotta break the ice," he yelled out as nothing happened. He clawed at the switch that he knew would manually deploy the flaps to break the ice.

With barely a moment to spare he broke through the ice over the knob on his hip, and with a turn the flaps shot out breaking through the built up ice. Moments after, the HUD lit up through its start up cycle. As the city below approached faster his rockets fired off and shot him back through the sky as he gave a holler of joy. Over the intercom he could hear JC's cries over his thought of demise.

"JC, you can relax. I'm fine," he told her when he had calmed himself enough.

"Tony?" she breathed almost in disbelief and relief.

"It's okay. I'm coming back."

"Good," she responded, conviction filling her voice. "You had better get back here double quick so I can skin and tan your hide for that stunt."

He knew he was in trouble from the very beginning, but at that moment, it was worth any wrath she could possibly bestow upon him. At least, he hoped that.

He flew to his home and landed in the garage. That is, if falling through the roof, first story floor, landing on a grand piano, and destroying his favorite car could be considered landing in the garage. Dummy proceed to douse him with the extinguishing foam as JC ran over to make sure he was alright,

"Tony, did you break anything?" she asked as she removed the face piece.

"Just my pride," he moaned, more for the fact that the car was destroyed rather than any physical injury.

"Good. Get out of that thing. I'll see you upstairs," she responded, the contempt coming back as she stomped up the stairs. Figuring that it couldn't get much worse and that he would have to face her at some point, he got himself up and out of the suit. On his way up, he grabbed an ice bag from the fridge and the mug of coffee Pepper had left earlier.

"Alright, let's hear it. Yell at me and tell me I was stupid, but what ever it is, it won't put a damper on my…mood," he trailed off as he saw her expression in the glass of the living room.

She had her back turned to him, anger, disappointment, and what he could think of as fear etched in her body language as her face contorted in a look of unamusement and dissatisfaction. She stayed silent.

"Well, aren't you going to say anything? A minute ago you were ready to tear my head off, and now this. You really need to make up your mind."

"I have never lost anyone I was assigned to protect," she stated, her voice low and serious, her back still turned. "Not once have I even come close until what happened in Afghanistan. And after we returned, I never imagined anything like this would happen." She turned to him, her stare fixated on him with a look of severity he had not seen on her in over three months, maybe even a year. "You are hell bent on being my first."

"Listen, JC, I-"

"I'm not finished," she interrupted. "We made an agreement, but once again you proved that your word means very little when it comes to something you want. I understand it was important, but putting your life at risk by pulling a stupid stunt like that? That was plain lunacy. What were you thinking?" she demanded.

"I didn't know that was going to happen," he answered, trying to think of something to placate her.

"Bull shit," she retorted. "You were warned that the ice was fatal, and yet you kept on going. I know that machines are not always as accurate as they think they are, but when it says that something is going to kill, it's usually telling the truth." She took several deep breaths trying to compose herself. "I'm tired, Tony. I don't want to fight you. I just want you to think before acting from now on. Will you at least consider that?" she requested and began to head for the door.

Here he thought there was nothing at all she could say to disturb him, and once again, she proved him wrong. He gritted his teeth as she passed by. He knew this would be his only chance to atone before she held a permanent grudge.

"JC, wait," he said, stopping her before she could reach the door.

"What, Tony?" she demanded, exasperated.

"I…I'm sorry, JC. I…I don't know how else to say it or any better way to say it. I just…" he trailed off not quite sure what else to say for the first time.

"I get it," she said, her gaze softening. "I know you're used to getting your way with just about everything, but it's got to change. In case you hadn't noticed," she continued, walking back. "doing everything your way isn't always the best way. Just look at what you did with your company. How many people lost their jobs and now can't support themselves or their families? I know you were trying to do something good, but you didn't take in to account the way it would affect the people. It's things like this that anger the public more than your weapons dealing or anything else you may do. Now," she paused, clearing her throat and changing subject. "Since I have thoroughly demoralized you for a moment, time to return to my job. How is your head?"

Tony gave a little smirk before saying, "I've had worse. I think I'll live."

"All right then." JC gave a loud yawn and rubbed one eye before saying, "I should get home now. My son's probably wondering what's happened to me. I'll see you in the morning."

"Are you okay to drive?" Tony asked as he watched her drag her feet to the door.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I've driven under worse conditions before," she answered.

"That's not exactly what I wanted to hear," Tony said. "Why don't you stay in the spare room tonight. Give me a little peace of mind," he offered.

"That's touching, Tony, but-"

"I insist," he interrupted. "Look, I don't want to wake up to the morning news to hear you've gotten into a crash because you fell asleep at the wheel. Besides, if you end up in the hospital, who's gonna be around to make sure I don't wind up there?"

She gave him a small grin before sighing and replying, "All right, Tony. I'll just leave a message at home so Darren doesn't come storming up here with the police wondering why I never came home."

"He wouldn't really do that would he?" Tony asked, all of a sudden having second thoughts about asking her to stay. If her son was going to do that, he was almost more willing to just let her leave. Almost.

"He's capable of just about anything. I wouldn't put it past him not to try something like that," she said, pulling out her cell phone.

"I'll just go see if there are some spare clothes up there. Pepper sometimes stays the night when she works really late and always has a pair of clean pajamas."

She nodded in response as she began speaking into the phone and he went up stairs. Sure enough, Pepper had left several pairs of pajama pants and shirts, so Tony grabbed a set and left it out on the bed for JC. After showing her to her room and saying good night, Tony went to his own room and changed his clothes before slipping underneath the sheets for a long awaited rest.

* * *

**AN: Sorry the update took so long. For those of you have stuck in there, thanks! Keep reading, because things are about to get a bit heavier in the next chapter or two as we find out a little more about JC's interesting past. Until then, read and review otherwise I don't know what you're thinking.**

**OKay guys, hopefully you read this otherwise you're gonna miss out. I'm going on hiatus until January so I can get my school work done, otherwise, I won't graduate then you don't get to finish the story, and I'd hate to do that to you. By the time I come back I expect to have several updates ready what with Christmas breal during that time. Anyways, stay with me!! I promise I'll come back!!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Well as promised for the new year, here is the first update in a very long time. Hopefully I'll be able to get another update by the end of the month. Thanks to everyone who stuck around to see the new update. Onto the next chapter.**

* * *

**Chapter 10**

Screams echoed down the halls. He ran hard, his heart racing, lungs burning, but he was determined to get there. The screams grew louder, but no matter how hard he tried, he could not find the source. It drove him insane. He knew she needed him, needed help, but he couldn't find her. He had already been too late for Yinsen. He was not going to let that happen again to her.

Another yell tore through the air, this time closer, mere feet away. He saw the entrance, the shadows within fighting. He forced his tired legs to carry him further. He would not let it happen again.

He entered swiftly, saw the face of the attacker. Raza. He had her in a vice like grip, a knife to her throat. "Tony!" she cried, tears falling from her eyes.

"You are too late, Stark. You can not save her," he taunted, edging the knife across her skin, small drops of blood trailing down her neck.

"Let her go, Raza. I'm the one you want. Leave her alone," Tony demanded.

"No," he answered, a sick smile playing across his face.

"Tony!"

"Raza, I swear, if you don't let her go, I will kill you. Do you hear me? Nothing you do, no place you hide will keep you safe from me," Tony growled.

"Very well, Stark. I shall release her," he said, the blade moving from her neck. In an instant, before either of them could do anything, Raza's blade was driven through her chest, blood staining her shirt a dark crimson.

"No!" Tony exclaimed, rushing to her crumpled form.

He gritted his teeth, closed his eyes to fight back the tears, the anger he felt. He had let it happen. He had let her die. With a loud roar, he yelled, "No!"

* * *

Tony awoke with a start, cold sweat covering his body. His eyes darted around trying to be sure of his surroundings before relaxing again. It was just a dream, a horrible nightmare. He was still in his own home, in his own bed, safe and sound. There was no cave, no death, but most importantly, no Raza.

With a renewed peace of mind, he lay back down, eager to return to a more peaceful, restful sleep when a scream, this time a real one, echoed through his home. He shot up from his bed and ran to JC's room hoping not relive the nightmare of mere minutes ago.

He opened the door to see JC thrashing about yelling, "No! He's dead! I killed him!"

"JC," he called to her, rushing to her bedside. She did not answer him. Her thrashing ceased and she curled herself into a fetal position, quiet sobs now wracking her body.

"JC," he said more softly as he sat on the bed next to her. He heard her mumbling something into her pillow, but couldn't make any of it out. He leaned in closer to hear, and in an instant, she had her face buried in his shirt, folds of the fabric clutched in her hands.

"Oh, God, what have I done?" she sobbed.

"JC, it's okay. It wasn't real. Whatever you saw, it wasn't real. It was just a dream," he said soothingly, wrapping an arm around her, rubbing her back.

"No," she whimpered. "It was real. I killed him. I killed him."

"Shh," he whispered, hugging her tightly, continuing to rub her back. "It's alright."

She continued to sob into his chest, gripping his shirt even tighter, moving closer to him.

"He's dead," she sobbed.

He continued to comfort her, propping himself against the head board not knowing how long it would take to calm her enough to speak to her coherently.

Nearly half an hour passed before her tears quelled and her breathing evened out, signaling she had fallen back asleep. Realizing it was useless to get an explanation right then, Tony decided to wait until morning to talk with her.

As he tried to inch his way carefully off the bed so as not to wake her, JC held tight, whimpering that the thing she had been holding on to was trying to leave.

Seeing no harm in staying for a few more minutes so she could go into a deep sleep, Tony moved back to her and wrapped an arm around her to ease his own comfort. He looked to the clock, its red numbers flashing 2:30, and laid his head against the headboard and rest his eyes for what seemed a few minutes.

* * *

He opened his eyes again, the sun already shining through the window. He glanced over to the clock a bit dazed. Why was the sun up? It had only been a few minutes, hadn't it? The digits flashed 8:30 and he didn't pay it any mind until he found himself on the floor. That was about the time he realized he wasn't supposed to still be here at that time.

He groaned as he recalled receiving a sound punch to his abdomen before being forcibly kicked from the bed. "What the hell was that for?" he questioned as he sat up.

"What the hell was it for? What the hell were you doing in my bed?" an angry JC demanded.

"What? You don't remember?" Tony said, still taken aback by her action.

"What are you talking about? I never asked you to come in here, and I certainly did not tell you to sleep in my bed! I thought I could trust you. Apparently I can't," she fumed and stormed out of the room.

"JC, wait," Tony called after her, stumbling to get off the floor.

"No, Tony. I thought you changed, but obviously, you haven't. How could you do this to me?" she demanded, turning on him.

"Wait just a second, I didn't-"

"Didn't what?" she cut off, continuing down the stairs. "Didn't mean to stay all night or didn't mean to get caught? Honestly, Tony, grow up and admit to what you did!"

"You don't seem to understand. I wasn't trying to-"

"Bullshit, Tony. I know what you were trying to do. You tried it before in Japan, and you're trying it again now. I'm sticking around to give you another chance. I quit."

Knowing that he was getting nowhere by staying passive, Tony tried something more aggressive to get her attention. He grabbed her by the wrist and held it tight.

"Will you listen for one second and let me explain," he said more forcefully.

"Let go of me, Tony, or I swear I will start breaking limbs," she threatened.

"No. You're going to hear what I have to say for once."

"I don't want to hear your pathetic excuses," she said and attempted to jerk her wrist from his grip.

He held tight, refusing to give in to her. For once, he knew he was right, and he was not going to let her scold him again.

"I'm not letting you go. Not until you listen."

She narrowed her eyes and attempted to kick him. He reacted and blocked it with his free arm. She attempted to punch him but he sidestepped her and grabbed her wrist. Thinking on his feet, he turned her around and pinned her to the nearest wall, refusing to give her another opportunity to attack him.

"Since you're stuck here for a moment, you're going to listen to what I have to say," he said as she struggled against him. "I did nothing last night."

"Let me go,To-"

"I'm not finished," he snapped. "You were screaming. I went to see what was wrong."

"Tony, I-"

"Let me finish," he demanded again. He was not going to let her stop him. "I tried to see what was wrong, and _you_ grabbed _me_. I didn't go in there with any intention of staying, but you wouldn't let me go. I tried to leave, but you wouldn't let me. I took everything you ever said about me in the past because you were right, and I needed it, but not his time. I did nothing wrong!"

"Tony!" she snapped, a desperation in her voice he hadn't heard before. In that moment he realized she was quivering beneath his grip, fearfully, involuntary. He quickly released her realizing he may have gone too far in restraining her, but there was no other way to make her listen.

"Maybe you're right. Maybe it's better if you left. I never should have asked you here," he said more coldly than he intended. "I'm tired of trying to convince you I've changed. It's obvious that you'll never believe me. I won't bother wasting my time anymore," he huffed and strode down to the garage, hoping to find some sort of distraction.

Barely ten minutes into his fiddling with the face plate he heard the sound of footsteps and the door opening. Pepper wasn't supposed to be there for nearly another half hour. That left only one person.

Several more minutes passed as she sat down by the door, silence still permeating the air.

"You won't want to hear this, but I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you. You were only trying to help."

"What changed your mind? I thought you'd already decided I was guilty," he responded coldly.

"Do you really want to hear this story?"

"Please, do regail me with your reasoning, though I already have a pretty good idea where this is going."

"No, you don't," she said gravely. "But I do owe you this much. Where should I start?"

He thought for a moment, deciding whether or not he wanted to be rude about it. "Last night is as good a place as any," he said indifferently.

She took in a shaky breath before beginning her story. "I'm not part of regular military. I haven't been for some time. I was deemed unfit for active duty due to PTS. That was how they classified it nearly nine years ago. Nine eleven had just passed and the situation in the Middle East had become tense. My unit was one of the first to be deployed.

"At the time, my husband and I had been in the military and married for years; Darren had just had his seventh birthday. Anyways, his unit got deployed with mine. I was second in command for both units since mine was head of the operation and I had the most experience between the two. We were in this small village about sixty miles or so away from the nearest command post. We never saw the attack coming. They hit us and hit us hard. Within seconds our CO was dead which left me as XO.

"We were forced into a hole. On one side of us were insurgents. On the other was a vast minefield. We didn't stand a chance. Our only option was to hold out and wait for back up. Several called for retreat through the minefield, but I refused. The risk was far too great. Even so, one of them ran out anyways, and I couldn't stop him. I was responsible for his death," she began to choke back tears. "Because of my inability, my son has no father."

Tony turned around suddenly, taken aback by this revelation. "You said you were divorced," Tony said more as a question than a statement.

"I said we were separated. I never said we were divorced. Back up eventually did come, but it was too late. Nearly half of everyone that had been deployed was either dead or wounded. By the time we reached base I was in a near shell shocked state. It was several weeks before I was stable enough to be sent home for a psych evaluation. I was put on temporary leave for PTSD and required to check back in a month. When I came back, everyone thought I was okay, so I was put back on duty.

"Unfortunately, when they tried putting me through drills, I couldn't keep it together. The old memories kept resurfacing. That was when it was decided to pull me out of the field and stick me behind a desk. It drove me crazy. I couldn't stand being away from the action even though I knew what would happen if I tried." She paused for a moment before continuing.

"They gave me a deal. I became a tactical specialist used for special circumstance situations, basically a bodyguard for politicians and other important personnel. Over time I got a good reputation and made it my living. It made a good cover to get away from my son when I needed to."

"What do you mean?" Tony asked.

"What happened last night has been happening for the past nine years. I thought that I was over it after the first few months, but on the anniversary of the event, everything comes flooding back. I never forgot about it until now. I don't know how. I guess I got so distracted for once I couldn't think about it, but then I'm reminded and…" Her voice gave a crack as she trailed off.

"It wasn't your fault. You tried to stop him, didn't you?"

"Not hard enough."

"NO. You did everything you could. He was the one who disobeyed orders and ran out. He chose what he did, not you. You can't keep blaming yourself for something out of your control," he said, standing up.

"You don't get it," she exclaimed, standing up. "I should have grabbed him, held him down, anything to keep him from going, but I didn't. I don't know whether it was out of fear or not, but I hesitated to use my full authority and now he is dead." She let out a breath before turning to the door.

"I lied to you, Tony. I told you I never lost a man assigned to me. I did. I lost him. I promised I would never let that happen again, but I don't think that's possible here."

He approached her. She tried to walk away, but he gently grabbed her hand. "I know I've been an ass. I know what I've done, but I want it to end. I don't want to be known forever as 'The Merchant of Death' or 'War Monger.' Yinsen helped me see it, but you've kept me on the right course."

She turned to face him, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Please, don't leave me now. I don't know if I can do this without help."

"I don't think I'm the right person for that," she said.

"You're the only person right for it. You're the first and so far only one who has had the nerve to put me in my place, and it's starting to work," he admitted.

Her tears began to flow down her cheeks as she wrapped her arms around his waist. He returned the embrace, stroking her back in a calming manner. "You're the first to actually stay with me, to make sure I was okay," she mumbled into his chest.

Tony gave a small chuckle. "I think it's because you intimidate people."

He felt her giggling and knew he had managed to lighten the mood for a moment. Releasing her hold on him, JC pushed herself away and wiped the remaining tears from her eyes. "Look at me. I'm a wreck. Hadn't planned on this."

"You look fine, JC," he said with a smirk.

"Oh geez. What time is it?" she asked, flustered all of a sudden.

"Almost nine. Why?"

"I've gotta get home. Darren will wonder what happened."

"Are you okay to drive? I can have Happy take you," he offered.

"No, that's okay. I'll be fine," she threw over her shoulder as she headed up stairs. "I'll be back this afternoon."

"You don't really have to do that. You've spent enough time hanging around me for one weekend," he said, following her upstairs.

"Tony," she said, turning on him. "We've talked about this. This is my job."

"You're family is also part of your job, is it not?"

"Tell you what. When you stop doing life threatening things, I'll stop hanging around you 24/7," she offered. Tony couldn't give a good comeback. "I'll be back around two," she said and continued up the stairs and out the door.

* * *

**AN: I hoped you enjoyed the chapter. Leave me a review telling me what you think. The story is quickly coming to a close. There's going to be about four or five more chapters before it's all over. Not entirely sure yet. Anyways, let me know what you think. Thanks again. **


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Three o' clock rolled by and still JC had not returned. He had wanted her to take her time, but a phone call would have been nice before she decided to be late. Normally he wouldn't worry, but she was never late. After about another ten minutes he was ready to pick up the phone when she came running through the door.

"I hate cars, I hate freeways, and I hate idiots who feel the need to go hot rodding during rush hour. They should all be shot!" she exclaimed.

"Let's try this again. Hi, how are you? I'm fine and you?" Tony responded.

"I'm sorry I'm late. Some idiot decided to race his Camaro against somebody's Mustang, and it wasn't pretty, okay?"

"You could have called and said so."

"I left my cell phone here by accident. Why? Were you worried?"

"No," he said casually, "I was just half hoping you were out enjoying yourself like I told you to do. Silly me."

"Tony, you can't stay out of trouble for more than five minutes with out supervision. What exactly would you have done, if I hadn't come back today?" she questioned.

"I was just going to stay home and do calculations all night."

"Uh huh. And after that you would test it and break your neck. Who do you think Pepper would hunt down first?"

"Are you afraid of Pepper?" he questioned, raising his brow and smirking.

"You know better than anyone that an angry woman is a force to reckon with."

"You have a point there. Pepper is rather intimidating," he admitted, "But listen. I promise not to do a single experiment while you're gone. I will stay in the garage all night."

"You will never be able to keep that promise."

"Care to wager on that?" he challenged.

"You wanna make a bet?" she questioned, "All right. What are the stakes?"

"If I stay here all night and not do anything stupid, by your definition, you'll stop sticking around here so often and take some personal time every once in awhile," he offered.

"And if you don't, you are not allowed to bring up the subject ever again. Deal?" she said, offering her hand.

"You're on," he said, taking her hand. "This will be cake."

"Tony, before the night's out, you will lose."

"Don't count on it. Now go have fun with Darren, go to a spa, or whatever it is you do for fun. You do know what fun is, right?" he teased.

She reached out and punched him playfully on the shoulder. "You deserved that, jerk. I'll be back tomorrow morning then. That is, unless Pepper or Jarvis call me first," she said with a smirk.

"Don't count on it."

The day had passed with relatively no problem. Tony stayed downstairs the entire day staring at his computer screens going over even the most minute detail from the test flight. Some time past ten o'clock he was nearly dying of boredom. He'd wanted to test his theories more thoroughly with a live simulation rather than the computer, but he was not about to lose the bet. Tony Stark did not just give in so easily.

He stared through the face plate of the Mark II at the television to see a report from the Disney Concert Hall for the annual Fireman's Ball. He wouldn't have thought it so bad if they hadn't been calling him bedridden with PTS.

"Hey, Jarvis, did we get an invite to that?"

"I have no record, sir," the AI responded.

Tony wasn't sure which was worse: his agitation that the news was calling him bedridden with PTS or the burning desire to go crash the party.

"Your fabrication is complete, sir," Jarvis said as the image came up on screen.

"Good. Build it, paint it," he said looking down at his watch. Nearly ten forty five. "Don't wait up for me, honey," he said, heading for the door.

"May I remind you of your bargain with Miss JC, sir? You are not supposed to leave the house."

"Jarvis, JC is probably already asleep. Besides, this isn't something stupid, so don't call her," he ordered.

"Of course, sir."

After quickly dressing, styling his hair, and adding a dash of cologne, Tony hopped into his silver Audi and sped down the highway to the Disney Concert Hall. Sure the thought that he was breaking the bet had crossed his mind, but what she didn't know wouldn't come back to bite his ass.

As he handed over the car over to the valet the cameras, and the girls, went wild. Several women threw themselves at him hoping that He never he had remembered that special night. He never could get all the faces straight with their names. Spotting Obadiah's shocked face through the crowd, he figured it would be a good idea to say hello.

"Well, look at you," Stane greeted, trying to keep his surprise down to a minimum. "Didn't expect to see you here."

"What's the world coming to when a guy has to crash his own party?" he quipped. "I'll see you inside."

"Take it slow," Stane warned. "I've got the board right where I want them."

Tony gave a nod and said, "Just a little cabin fever. I'll only be a few minutes."

He turned, ready to go inside when the most unexpected face appeared. "Don't we look spiffy tonight," JC said, arms crossed.

It took Tony several moments to get over not only seeing JC but seeing her in a dress to boot. The red satin of her gown shimmered in the light as it accented curves he never realized she had. The low cut in the front coupled with the cut that went up her thigh was the cherry on top. Her hair had been curled and pulled up to be fastened by two hair sticks.

"Are you done fantasizing yet?" she asked, breaking him of his stupor.

"I wasn't fantasizing. I was watching my life flash before my eyes."

"Good answer, because if I'm not mistaken, we agreed that you would stay home."

"Jarvis told you, didn't he?" he assumed.

"No, not Jarvis."

"Pepper?" he guessed.

"Not even close."

"Then how did you know?"

"There's this new invention called the T.V. I figured you'd want to make a big entrance like this," she explained with a smirk.

"I take it that means you're here to drag me back."

"Tony, Tony, Tony," she said, linking arms with him. "I'm not here to drag you away. I'll let you stay and wallow in the thought that you lost. So, let's go," she said, and led him inside.

"I am curious how you managed to get all dressed up and get over here so quickly."

"This is not the first time I've had to be ready on the fly."

"I'm guessing you didn't have time to pack a pistol. What a shame," he teased.

"I'm packing two pistols and a knife. But you're right. I didn't have time to pack everything I wanted to."

He gave her a look over, wondering where she was hiding it all. "You thought there would honestly be trouble?"

"I'm careful, Tony. That's what makes me good."

"Well, if you're not going to use your weapons on me, I must say you look beautiful tonight."

"Tony, you've seen me in a dress before."

"No, never, but it is a good look for you. You should try it more often."

"Not on your life."

"Would you like a drink?" he offered, trying to change subject.

"Are you getting one?"

"Well, yeah."

"Then no. Somebody's gotta drive."

"We can always call a cab if you are that worried," he pointed out.

"Tony, just go, and stop having a fit. Consider this a last chance of freedom."

"Thank you, mother," he said and walked to the bar and ordered a scotch. Now he was starting to regret leaving.

"Mr. Stark?" a man said. Tony turned to see a man in a business suit.

"Yeah?" he responded.

"Agent Coulsen," he introduced himself.

"Oh yeah, the guy from the…"

"The Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division," he clarified. It was obvious he was used to this.

"Wow. You gotta get a new name for that," he commented.

"We're working on it," Coulsen admitted. "We need to debrief you on the events of your escape. What do you say to the thirteenth, your office?"

Tony didn't really hear a word of what was said. He was too fixated on his assistant who was wearing a very revealing dress.

"You're right. Let me go talk to my assistant and we'll make it a date," he stammered and wandered off.

"Hey," he greeted Pepper, who was a more than a little shocked to see him.

"What? What are you doing here?"

"Nothing. Just avoiding government agents," he said.

"Are you by yourself?"

"No, no. I've got JC with me. See?" he said, looking over to the bar. JC was there, Agent Coulsen seemingly in deep conversation with her. "You look great. I hardly recognized you. When did you get that dress?" he asked trying to change the subject.

"It was a gift for my birthday. From you, actually."

"Oh. Well, I got great taste. Would you like to dance?"

"Oh, no, I couldn't."

"Great," he said and pulled her away to dance.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that Pepper seemed very nervous about the situation.

"Am I making you uncomfortable?" he asked.

"Oh, no. I always forget to wear deodorant and dance with my boss in front of everyone I work with in a dress with no back."

"You look great. You smell great," he said trying to alleviate her nerves. "Although, I could fire you if that would ease the tension."

"I don't think you could tie your shoes without me."

"I'd make it a week," he said confidently. How hard could that be? Just because she practically ran his life didn't mean he couldn't make it on his own for awhile.

"Really? What's your social security number?" she asked.

He thought about for a moment. No good answer came to mind. "Five," he answered.

"Five? You're just missing a couple of digits," she teased.

"The other eight. I got you for the other eight," he said with a smirk. He knew just how to take off the edge. And it had been working up until then. Now there was just an awkward silence that just didn't seem to be fill-able. When it seemed like it would never end, Tony stopped. "Want some air?"

"Yes, I need some air," she said.

Not wasting a moment, he led her from the dance floor to the balcony where nerves were replaced by what he could only discern as anger.

"That was totally weird," she said.

"That was totally harmless."

"It was totally not harmless. I mean…in front of everyone I work with…"

"I really think you lost objectivity here," he said. "We just danced."

"No, it's not just a dance. You don't understand, because you're you, and everyone knows you and how you are with girls and that's fine," she stammered. "But then, you know, me, and you're my boss…"

"I really think you're making too much of it."

"It makes me look I'm the one that's trying to…"

"You're just overreacting a bit."

"And we're here and I'm in this ridiculous dress," she said breathlessly. It was only a second later that she had closed what little distance there was between them, her lips part as an invitation. He moved in, but some thought in the back of his mind stopped him for the first time. Did he really feel that way? For Pepper? Or was she just another conquest? He wasn't sure.

The awkwardness grew until both of them finally pulled away. Tony tried to think of something to say, anything to break the tension, but Pepper was on top of it.

"I would like a drink," she said.

"Got it," he said instantly, ready to get away from that scene.

"I would like a vodka martini, very dry with olives, lots of olives, like at least three olives."

He wandered back downstairs to get the martinis when he saw JC looking rather livid.

"Having a good time?" she asked unconvincingly.

"Avoiding government agents, dealing with emotion fraught assistants, what could be more fun?"

"Well, Tony Stark," a blonde woman in short black dress greeted him. Tony knew he should recognize her from somewhere, but, as always, he couldn't quite put his finger on it. The woman walked over and leaned against the bar, obviously wanting a conversation.

"Oh, hey," he said politely as his mind raced to find a name for her.

"Fancy seeing you here," she said cordially.

Tony groped around his mind desperately looking for her name but couldn't find the exact one, so he took a guess. "Carrie?"

"Christine," she corrected.

"That's right," he said casually. _Not even close,_ he berated himself. Now he remembered who she was. Christine Everheart: Vanity Fair reporter and the last woman he slept with before going to Afghanistan.

"You have a lot of nerve showing up here tonight," she said accusingly. "Can I at least get a reaction from you?"

"Panic. I would say panic is my reaction," he said, looking nervously to JC, eyes begging her to step in. She looked over briefly at Christine before rolling her eyes.

"Because I was referring to your company's involvement in this latest atrocity."

"Yeah, they just put my name on the invitation. I wouldn't know what to tell you," he said, giving another glance to JC.

"I actually almost bought it hook line and sinker."

"Listen lady," JC finally interrupted. "I don't know what you're after, but back off," she said, stepping between them.

"This is none of your business," Christine retorted, trying to push past JC.

"It is," JC said, sidestepping with her, "when you are verbally attacking my client. Now back off before my stiletto 'accidently' finds its way through your foot."

"So," she said, a smirk forming, "you're the infamous, pathetic excuse of a body guard Tony hired. I thought he would have better sense to hire somebody who hadn't just nearly gotten him killed, but I guess he just can't resist the big chest, bimbo type."

A faint 'clink' was heard and Christine's eyes went wide. Tony peered over JC's shoulder to see a stiletto knife stuck in the floor.

"Oops," JC said unapologetically, "it slipped. I'm a bit clumsy, you know."

"Threaten me all you like, but you're not protecting a saint. I know him for what he really is," Christine seethed.

"So do I. Now unless you have something better than that, I suggest you leave before making a bigger embarrassment of yourself."

"He's told everyone he's taking responsibility. Is this what you call accountability?" she questioned, throwing a stack of photos on the bar. "It's a town called Gulmira. Ever heard of it?"

Tony grabbed the pictures and flipped through them as JC looked on. He knew what she was thinking. Yinsen's hometown was Gulmira.

"When were these taken?" he questioned.

"Yesterday," Christine spat.

He took another glance down at the photo of the Ten Ring insignia and his Jericho missiles.

"I didn't approve any shipment."

"Well you're company did."

"I'm not my company," he seethed. "Come on, JC."

JC bent down and grabbed her knife and replaced it in its holster beneath her dress.

"You're no saint either for sleeping with him," JC said in Christine's ear. Tony smirked. Score one for JC.

"At least I'm not a dog that comes when called," Christine threw back. Score one for Christine.

Tony just kept on walking sensing things were about to possibly about to get worse. He walked until he got outside and found Obadiah.

"Stane," he called.

"Have you seen these?" he asked as he shoved the pictures in Stane's hands.

Obadiah stopped to shoo away more photographers as he barely glanced at the photos.

"Ton, you're being naïve."

"No, I was naïve when they said, 'Here's the line. Don't cross it. That's how we do business.' If we're dealing under the table…" Tony didn't even want to think it. "Are we?"

Stane gave him an assessing view before turning back to the paparazzi. "Let's take a picture, huh?" The cameras went wild at the chance to capture the two greatest business men of the world. "Who do you think locked you out? I was the one who filed the injunction. I had to protect you," Stane said, and walked away as if nothing had happened.

Tony stood there dumbfounded with a feeling of anger and loneliness he hadn't felt since he lost his parents. The one person he trusted most had betrayed him.

"Tony," JC said, touching his shoulder.

"What?" he answered through gritted teeth.

"Let's get out of here," she said pulling him down the stairs to the valet who brought his car around.

The drive back to his home was silent as the two sat staring out the front. When JC finally pulled into the garage and killed the engine she buried her face in her hands and took a deep breath.

"JC, are you all right?" Tony finally asked, the conversation with Christine rising to the front of his mind.

"I'm fine," she said and got out with a huff. He followed quickly behind.

"Now try saying it to my face," he challenged.

She turned to him, an exasperated look on her face. "What do you want me to say, Tony?"

"You don't honestly believe a word of what Christine said, do you?"

"She's right, Tony. You nearly died in Afghanistan and I did little to stop it. You were the one who had to save me, remember?"

"So, that makes Japan, where you nearly died trying to save my sorry ass, nothing? Come on, JC. Christine says that kind of stuff to screw with people. She's a reporter. It's her job."

"Stop," she said, jabbing a finger at him, "trying to cheer me up. If I was a good guard, things like near death with the same client twice wouldn't happen."

"I'm still alive aren't I?"

"Barely," she spat. "Don't you remember? We're walking dead. These things in us could give out at any time and kill us both. Good guards don't let this kind of crap happen."

"Do you trust me?"

"What?" she asked confused.

"Do you trust me?" he repeated, separating each word.

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"You once said," he said moving closer, "that you have hated me since the day we met, but there was something that you admired in spite of that hatred. When I do something, I get it done. You trust my confidence in my work. I know that you are not a pathetic, big chest bimbo. I wouldn't have hired you if you were. If there was ever a time you trusted my confidence, trust it now. There's no one else I would rather have than you on my personal security." There was no hint of sarcasm, no sexual humor, nothing. In that moment, he was as honest and serious with her as he had been the day he asked her to put aside their differences in that cave.

"You won't hire the bimbo type, but you'll hire the one person that tried to murder you."

"If you're talking about the beating you gave me in Japan, I deserved it. You and I both know that."

"No, Tony. I'm talking about after you passed out," she admitted. Tony stood there in silence waiting for her to continue. "After you tried to…coerce me, I did defend myself. After you had passed out, I grabbed my gun and put it to your temple," she said looking away. "I thought about killing you, but it crossed my mind that everyone would hear a gunshot, so I thought about slitting your throat, but I knew I couldn't do it in my room. What would everyone think if my ward was found dead in my room? So I dragged you back to your room. I stood over your body with my knife to your neck. I thought how easy it would be, just to make a single cut and my problems with you would be over. I readied myself to do it, was about to slice you open. Then I went back to my room and went to sleep."

Tony just stood there trying to wrap his head around what she was saying. She had tried to kill. She had hated him so much that she was willing to kill him. And yet she was there, still trying to protect him.

"What stopped you?"

"I'm not sure," she said turning back to him. "I've wondered that very thing since that night. I'm not sure whether it was the fear that my reputation would be tarnished or that I didn't want to have blood on my hands, I'll never know. Part of me wonders whether or not I should have finished the job. If I had killed you, I wouldn't be in this mess. But…part of me is glad I didn't. Then I wouldn't get to see this…thing you're building. It's something big, different from anything else you've ever done. It's…it's as close to a good thing that you've ever accomplished."

"JC," he said taking in a deep breath, "I think it's time we revisited an old agreement."

She looked at him quizzically.

"You remember back in the cave when we said to put our differences behind us temporarily?"

"Yes. Why?"

"I'm suggesting we do that now but on a more permanent level."

"What exactly are you suggesting, Tony?"

"I'm suggesting that we put our differences behind us, start over. I know it requires me to ask more of you than you of me, but I think we've gotten to a point where it's not just a matter of simply ignoring what has happened and dealing with it. It's time we finally put it behind us and stop worrying whether the other is going to repeat the same mistake. Can we agree to that?" he offered.

She stood there thinking it over. It was hard to tell what exactly she was thinking, but he was hoping that it was good. "I can never forgive what you did."

Tony's face fell.

"However," she said, "I could never expect you to forgive me for what I did either. Maybe you're right, for once." She smirked and held out her hand. "I'm JC, and I'm gonna do my job to protect you."

He took her hand and shook it. "I'm Tony, and I'm gonna try to do my job of not making your job too difficult."

"Well, with your permission, I'd like to go upstairs and get out of these clothes."

"Go ahead. I'll be down here, if you need anything."

It was nearly a half hour before JC finally came back downstairs in the pair of pajamas she had used the night before. She was gathering up her purse and cell phone and about to call a cab when she heard explosions coming from the garage. She ran down the stairs and was about to enter the key code for the door when she realized it was no longer there. The entire wall was shattered into a million pieces on the floor. Tony was standing not too far off with one of the gauntlets on his right hand.

"Tony, is everything all right?" she asked tentatively.

"Everything is fine, JC," he answered.

"You want to explain this then?"

He turned to her, a look of hatred and determination she had not seen since the day they escaped.

"It's time to take the Mark III for a test run. I was thinking about heading towards Gulmira, blowing up a few missiles."

"Tony, remember the part about not making my job too difficult? This would fall under the too difficult category."

"I'm not asking for your permission, JC. I am asking that you not get in my way this time."

"Like hell I won't," she exclaimed. "A test flight is one thing. Going half way across the world and jumping into weapons fire is something else entirely."

"That's his home!" Tony said through gritted teeth. "That is Yinsen's home and those are my weapons that were stolen from me. I'll be damned if I let them get away with destroying his home with my weapons. Now, you either help me or get out of my way."

She stood there in the doorway faced with an impossible decision. Either let him go get himself killed, or try to stop him and leave him feeling like this for the rest of his life.

* * *

**AN: I know it's been a REALLY long time since I posted anything, so I tried to make this one a longer one. Hope you guys enjoy. This one is almost over. I'm thinking maybe three or four more chapters are left before the end. THinking about doing a sequal. As always, let me know what you think. And thanks again to all of you who have put up with me since this story was started over a year ago. You guys are so awesome!!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"Okay, Tony. ETA ten minutes. Are you ready?" JC asked through the intercom.

"Yep," Tony responded. "You still haven't said why you agreed to it."

"To what?"

"You know what. You could have stopped me if you wanted to. Why didn't you?" he persisted.

"I don't make it a habit of arguing with crazed men with weapons in their hands," she replied.

"You and I both know that's a lie," he said. He had never known her to back down so easily before which made him question why she had done it.

"I don't have to answer you right this very second. Why don't you focus on what's going on right now. You're small enough now for the military not to pick you up on radar, but once you start making things go boom, they will notice. Get in, get out, understand?"

"Yes, mother. Can't you just hack in and block sensors or something? That would be rather helpful."

"Besides being illegal, do I look like a techy?" she said dryly.

"Well you don't look deadly either. I could be wonderfully surprised."

"Five minutes, Tony," she reminded him, getting focused. "Be aware of possible human shields. They will not hesitate to kill, so you cannot hesitate to take them down."

"Affirmative," he answered. That, he knew, would not be a problem. "You still never answered why."

"You'll never get an answer."

"Oh come on. You must have some sort of answer. It couldn't have been for nothing."

"None of your business, Tony."

"Just a hint," he persisted.

"Just drop it, Tony."

"Pretty please?"

"Target in sight. Start your descent," she ordered.

"Fine, sour puss."

"You will be slapped for that when you get home," she threatened.

Tony proceeded to stick out his tongue like a five year old knowing she could see it on the monitor. He landed with a loud thud amidst the frightened villagers and terrorists. They looked at him curiously for a moment before several opened fire. Tony didn't waste a moment and hit the closest one, sending him flying to the roof of a nearby building. He turned to the others letting out a discharge of energy from his arc reactor. As he went to dispatch the others he stopped. Each one held a prisoner in front of them, weapons pointed at the hostages.

"JARVIS, target hostiles. Small munitions only," JC ordered.

Tony watched as the computer quickly assigned targets to the hostiles and civilians before shooting out high caliber bullets at the hostiles. They fell to the ground silently as the civilians looked on in awe and terror at what he had done.

"Good work, Tony. You saw Raza's second in command, right?"

Tony nodded and went to the wall he knew the coward was hiding behind. He punched through the concrete and grabbed the man by the scruff of his neck, pulling him back through the wall. The man looked up, fear in his eyes as he waited for Tony's next move. Knowing time was of the essence, Tony took off leaving the terrorist in the hands of the villagers.

"He's all yours," he said, and got back to his mission. A few blocks away the Jericho missiles had been set up ready to fire. As JARVIS began to target the missiles, something struck Tony from behind, sending him tumbling to the ground with a loud bang.

"Tony, what happened? What's going on?" JC demanded.

He picked himself up and surveyed what had hit him only to find one of his tanks staring him in the face.

"Tank," he reported as he pulled himself from the small crater he had created.

"Can you handle him?" JC asked.

The tank fired again. Tony side stepped the projectile before raising his arm and firing his own small missile down the tanks muzzle. He turned and walked away as the tank exploded behind him.

"No problem," he said and went back to the missiles.

He hovered over them, locking on to them before releasing another discharge from his palms, blowing the missiles to pieces and sending the terrorists screaming. Satisfied with his work Tony turned around and headed home.

"Nice job, Tony. If it weren't illegal for you to do that, I'd say the military would be giving you thank you right about now," JC said. "I know those people down there are more than grateful."

"Yeah, I know. This still doesn't answer how they got the weapons in the first place. That can't be all that they have or all that's gotten out. There's still more to be done," Tony said solemnly.

"Tony, this isn't that simple. I understand Gulmira, but trying to go everywhere is unrealistic, impossible even. There's no way to be sure where any other weapons are for sure, and even if you did find them, there's no way for you to get them all before they found a way to reproduce them themselves."

"Do you always have to be so pessimistic?" he retorted.

"I'm being realistic, not pessimistic."

"Yeah right, JC. You and I both know that's-" He was cut off by his phone ringing. The ID on the screen came up as Colonel Rhodes. _Shit. _He answered the phone. "Hello."

"Tony, it's me," came a muffled voice.

"I'm sorry," Tony said unsure of what he had said.

"It's Rhodey," he clarified.

"Speak up," Tony said almost able to make out what he was saying.

"What the hell is that noise?"

"I'm driving with the top down."

"Well, I need your help right now."

"Funny how that works, huh?" Tony said referring to Rhodey's reluctance several days before.

"Yeah. Speaking of funny, we got a weapons depot that was just blown up a few klicks from where you were being held captive."

"Well," Tony said, sucking in air against the strain of being in the suit for so long, "I'd say that's hot spot. Sounds…like someone stepped in and did your job for you."

"Why do you sound out of breath, Tony?" Rhodey asked, suddenly suspicious.

"I'm not. I was running through the canyon."

"I thought you were driving."

"Right. I was driving…to the canyon…where I'm going to run," Tony lied pathetically.

"You sure you don't have any tech in that area that I should know about?" Rhodey asked, the insinuation clear in his tone.

"Nope."

"Good, 'cause I'm staring at one that's about to be blown to kingdom come."

A moment later two F-22 jets pulled up behind him. _Shit._

"That's my exit," he said brightly before hanging up on Rhodey and spinning off in an evasive maneuver.

"Tony, get out of there. Go supersonic and get out of there," JC ordered.

"I'm working on it, but in case you hadn't noticed, they are more experienced than I am at flying."

He dodged and rolled as the jets followed him and attempted to shoot him down. "Flares!" Tony ordered as a missile locked on target. The missile made contact with the flares propelling Tony forward and stunning him for several seconds, allowing the jets to close in.

"I hope you have a better idea than trying to outrun them, JC."

"Break their line of sight. They can't hit what they can't see," she suggested, "JARVIS, deploy flaps."

Tony braced himself as every flap on the suit spread out slowing him down as the jets raced forward. As one of them passed he latched on to the closest one and pulled himself close to its underside. "You think they fell for it?"

"For your sake, I hope so. Just hang on tight until they break formation, then try to make a break for it."

"I got a better idea. JARVIS, call Rhodey back," Tony said.

"Tony, what are you doing? There's nothing he can do."

"He might be able to B.S. his way out of this. Just do it," he ordered.

JARVIS did so and after a few rings Rhodey answered, "Hello."

"Hi, Rhodey, it's me."

"I'm sorry," Rhodey said, knowing he had caught Tony.

"That thing you're asking about. It's me," Tony admitted.

"No, Tony. You see, you don't go sending civilian equipment into my active war zone," Rhodey chided.

"It's not a piece of equipment. It's a suit. I'm in it. It's me!" Tony said against the strain of trying to keep a grip on the jet.

All of a sudden the jet began spinning at an accelerated rate. Tony held on to no avail. He lost his grip on the jet's underside and went tumbling through the air before colliding with the other jet's wing. Tony righted himself in time to watch the other jet begin to plummet as the pilot ejected. Several seconds passed without a chute.

"Tony, he's jammed. If his chute doesn't deploy soon-"

"I know," Tony cut off and chased after the free falling pilot.

"Sir, we are still being pursued. Evasive maneuvers recommended," JARVIS chimed in.

"Keep going," Tony ordered as he began to close in on the pilot. He reached out and grabbed the seat, ripping the chute release and watched as the parachute deployed. He smirked to himself before flying off in the opposite direction of the jets.

Rhodey came back on the phone a few seconds later. "Tony, you still there?"

"Yeah, thanks man."

"You crazy son of a bitch," Rhodey chuckled, "You know you owe me a plane right."

"Technically the jet ran over him, Rhodey," JC chimed in.

"JC, what are you...Never mind. I don't think I want to know."

"So you gonna come by and see what I'm working on?" Tony offered again.

"No, no, no, the less I know, the better. Now, what am I gonna tell the press?"

"Training exercise. Isn't that the usual B.S.?"

"It's not that simple."

"Rhodey, you and I both know we never tell the truth when this shit comes up. The media will believe whatever the hell we tell them. Besides, I doubt they'd believe a tin man came flying through," JC said.

"I am not a tin man," Tony interjected.

"You just worry about getting yourself home, Tony. I'll see you in a few hours," JC said.

"She always that bossy?" Rhodey asked.

"You should see her on a regular day," Tony replied.

"I can still hear you, you know," JC chimed in.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't hear that. What did you say? You're breaking up," Tony lied.

"Do I need to tell Pepper what you've been up to?" she threatened.

"I'll tell her you helped me."

"You held a high power gun to my head."

"Did not."

"Who's she more likely to believe?"

"I'm her boss."

"I'm her friend. Friend trumps boss every time."

"Yeah, well…" Tony grasped at straws trying to find a good come back. "I've been her friend longer."

"I dare you to try using that one. Just worry about getting yourself home. And Rhodey, good luck with the press."

"Yeah, right."

After about six hours Tony finally came flying through the open garage door coming to a halt by the assembly equipment.

"How was the flight?" JC greeted.

"Well enough, but I need to get out of this suit," Tony said as he got into position in the equipment.

"Getting a little claustrophobic are we?" JC teased.

"There are no bathrooms in this suit."

JC stared at him for a moment as she contemplated his statement. "I take it that's going to be the next revision?"

"Yep," he said as the equipment started to take apart the suit. It had barely started when it started tugging and got stuck. "Ow!" Tony exclaimed as the machinery jerked on his arm.

"It is a tight fit, sir," JARVIS commented.

"Gimme a break will you? It's my first time."

"Did you get enough dents in it? I don't think you let them hit you enough," JC said as she surveyed the armor.

"Dents aside, I made this thing to come off, so it should just come apart," Tony grunted as he attempted to pull his arm free.

"Sir, the more you struggle, the more this is going to hurt," JARVIS chided.

"Tony, just hold still and take it like a man."

"I'd like to see you in this position," he challenged.

"You wish," JC smirked.

"Would you just get over here and help me out of this suit."

"And what would you suggest I use?"

"Go pick a screwdriver or something. Just don't stand there. I don't think I can do this by myself," he said as he again tried pulling his arm free.

"Fine," JC said and took one of the screwdrivers from Tony's tool kit. "Where should I start?"

"Go anywhere. Just hurry up. I can't hold this inside for long."

"All right, all right, I'm going," JC said and went to undoing the screws on the legs of the suit.

"What is going on here?" came a new voice. Tony and JC looked over to see Pepper standing in horror at what she had seen and most likely heard. They looked to each other, realizing the compromising position they were in. JC pulled away, a bright hue of red covering her face while Tony looked at Pepper unabashed.

"Let's face it. This is _not_ the worst thing you've ever caught me doing."

She continued to stare in horror at Tony's armor before speaking again in a shaky voice, "Are those bullet holes?"

* * *

**AN: Yay for updates! I think I actually got this one done fairly quickly too. Anyways, R&R as always.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

It had taken some time to finally settle Pepper down after the shock of seeing her boss in a bullet dented suit of armor and the thought that he and JC had been...Tony still wasn't sure what had given Pepper that specific idea. It wasn't like he had said anything dirty. And JC certainly said nothing of the sort. He worried that Pepper worked too hard sometimes. Now she was getting the craziest ideas. Except for the part about being in the bullet dented suit. There was probably a reasonable argument in there about being worried.

Several hours later, after Tony had been pried from the suit, he sat in the garage with JC working on repairing the abused armor.

"It held up pretty good against some of those high caliber rounds. I didn't think it would last as long as it did," JC commented as she watched him work.

"It was made to withstand small meteors. I knew it would be safe. And it doesn't ice up like the other suit," Tony said with a smirk.

"If you say so, Tony," JC teased. "How do you think Pepper's holding up?"

"I guess it was a bit of a shock, but she's a capable person."

"She yelled at you, didn't she?"

"Yes, while you conveniently ran off to call Darren. Why didn't she yell at you? You were the one that let me go," he whined.

"I told you. We're friends, and she knows you're a bonehead."

Tony rolled his eyes and went back to work on the torso section of the suit that he had hanging. As he worked he felt as JC walked up to him and slapped his shoulder. He jerked back and put his hand instinctively to his now throbbing shoulder. She had pretty good aim hitting one of his larger bruises.

"What was that for?" he whined.

"That was for calling me a sour puss today," she said, arms crossed over her chest.

"Did you have to hit me there?" he said as he winced, "That's where the jet hit me."

"Let me see it," she said as she tried to pull back the collar of the shirt.

"Don't even think about it. I don't need another bruise on top of it," Tony snapped and pulled away.

"Would you stop being such a baby and take off the shirt. I want to see how bad it is."

He eyed her warily not really relishing the thought of exposing himself to her in case she did plan on striking him again.

"I promise I won't hit you. I just need to see how bad it is. Now take off your shirt."

Hoping that she was indeed being truthful, not that she was one to lie, he carefully removed his shirt, wincing as his shoulder protested against the movement. He saw her gaze widen slightly as she took in the sight of his bruises. Aside from the rather large black-purple spot on his shoulder, smaller circular bruises dotted his back and arms with a few on his neck too. She reached out and gently touched the welt on his shoulder. He winced but slowly relaxed at her touch.

"How bad does it hurt?" she asked as her fingers wandered across his back.

"Well, it's not as bad as when I got this," he said, tapping his arc reactor, "But it still hurts pretty bad."

"I bet it does. What about the muscle here?" she asked as she pressed on one of the few spots that wasn't bruised.

"Ow…that's a bit sore," he winced.

She gave a chuckle as she applied pressure to the muscle and began to rub, soothing away the soreness. He tensed for a moment but quickly relaxed as her hands moved across his back easing his tension and bringing some relief from his pain. He barely noticed when she stopped massaging and draped her arms over his shoulders.

"Feel better?" she asked when he didn't respond.

He cleared his throat and stood up trying to compose himself. "Yeah, yeah, it's a lot better now. Thanks," he said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"I'm gonna go get you some ice packs and something else for your bruises. Be back in just a minute."

He nodded and put his shirt back on before going back to work on the suit. Several minutes later Pepper finally came back down stairs.

"Hey," he greeted her as she walked over, a look of shock still on her face as she eyed the armor hanging from the ceiling. "Are you busy? I need you to run an errand," he said, getting up from his stool and looking through most of the junk that had wound up on his desk until he found the flashdrive he needed. "I need you to go to my office and download the recent shipping manifest. It should be under executive files, and if not, it's been put on a ghost drive in which case you'll need to look for the lowest numerical heading. This will get you in," he said handing her the flashdrive.

"And what do you intend to do if I bring this back?"

"Same drill," he said, looking over the monitors that had various displays of what still needed repairs. "They've been dealing under the table. I'm going to find my weapons and destroy them."

"Tony, you know I would help you with anything, but I cannot help you if you are going to start this all over again."

"There is nothing except this," he said sternly, "There's no art opening, no charity, there is nothing to sign. There is the next mission and nothing else."

"Is that so?" she challenged. "Well then I quit," she said and tossed the USB back on the desk.

"You stood by me while I reaped the benefits of destruction, and now that I'm trying to protect the people I put in harm's way you're going to walk away," he said in disbelief.

"You're going to kill yourself, Tony. I don't know why JC is trying to help you, but I won't be a part of it," she said and began to storm off.

"I shouldn't be alive," he said, his voice sounding small surprising even him, "unless it was for a reason." He slumped back in his chair as Pepper turned back to him, a look of curiosity on her face. "I'm not crazy, Pepper. I just finally know what I have to do. And I know in my heart that it's right."

He sat there twiddling his fingers as Pepper stood there thinking of what she would do next. It didn't take long for her to decide as she walked forward and took back the USB. "You're all I have too, you know," she said.

He smiled at her, remembering what he had said some weeks before when he had first come home and had to replace his arc reactor. At the time, Pepper was the only one he had. She had been with him through thick and thin and had never truly questioned him. But now JC was here. Yes, she had questioned everything that he did, but somehow she had understood his reasoning and even encouraged him to keep going on his apparent fool's errand.

As Pepper left to carry out her mission, JC came back down stairs with an ice pack, some elastic wrapping, and a tube of ointment that he wasn't sure what it was for.

"Who said you were allowed to put your shirt back on?" she half teased.

"I figured Pepper had been scared enough today. She would only worry more if she saw this," he said as he removed his shirt again.

"Where was she going anyway? It's a bit early for her to be going home," she noted.

"I needed her to get something from my office. She'll be back later. What's all that for?" he questioned, eyeing the items in her hand.

"Just turn around," she ordered as she opened the tube.

He did as told but asked again, "What is that stuff?"

"This," she said as she spread the ointment over the bruises, "is Vitamin K cream. It helps heal the bruises faster. I always keep some around for anything serious like this."

"And the rest of it?"

"Lift your arm," she said as she put the cap back on the tube and grabbed the elastic wrap. "I'm going to wrap this around your shoulder. It'll help keep the bruise from getting worse. I don't know how much good it will do now since you waited so long, but it's better to do it anyways," she said as she wrapped his shoulder fairly tight with the elastic wrap. "I want you to keep ice on this for twenty minute intervals. All right?"

"Aren't we such a good little nurse," he teased with a smirk.

"With someone like you who seems to seek out everything that can hurt a person, that's a bit of requirement."

They laughed at each other for a moment before JC let out a long yawn.

"You tired?" Tony asked.

"I guess so. The past couple of days have just been…a nightmare to say the least," she said, rubbing her eyes.

"Are you holding up okay?"

She rubbed the back of her neck and let out a breath. "I'll be better when I get home to my own bed. Haven't been there for a few days," she said with a small smile.

"How is Darren taking all this? I know he hates me."

"I don't know. It's hard to tell. He stopped cursing your name every time it comes up in conversation."

"Well, it is an improvement. I still doubt he'd let me through the door."

She smirked, obviously recalling the night he had come to her home.

"I should go home now. I need some rest," she said and walked upstairs through the still nonexistent door.

Tony followed close behind, sensing that she was still unsettled by the events of the past several days. He watched as she gathered up her coat and purse and check for her keys.

"Are you sure you're all right?" he asked again.

"Tony, I'm fine. I just need a good night's rest," she said unconvincingly.

He shook his head at her. "Come here," he said.

She looked at him confused as he approached her and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close.

"Tony, I-"

"Shh," he whispered, "Do I really look that inobservant? You think I can't tell when something is really bothering you, when you just want to cry? I know you better than you seem to think."

She took in a shaky breath as she wrapped her arms around him, returning the embrace.

"This isn't how it's supposed to be, you know," she said in to his chest.

"What do you mean?"

"It's my job to be the bodyguard, not yours."

He smiled softly in her hair. "Everyone needs protection at some point."

As he held her close he could feel her breathing, feel her body warm against his and felt something he had scarce felt for anyone. He wasn't sure it was even describable. He wanted to be there for her, to hold her like this, happy or sad. He wanted to just take her past away, take away the pain and hurt she felt and let her start anew. He had already his way through a suit of armor. He wanted to be that armor for her. But this time, he wasn't sure if he could have what he wanted. Certainly she did not feel the same way for him. She didn't hate him anymore, but that didn't mean she liked him beyond friendship.

"Tony," she said softly, breaking him from his thoughts for a moment.

"Hmm?" he said.

"I've never…never felt this safe before."

"Isn't that what friends are for?"

"Let me finish," she said. "I've never felt as safe outside your arms," she admittedly hoarsely. Tony wasn't sure what to say. All he could do was stand there and hold her. "I know I shouldn't…can't feel like this. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that," she said and tried to pull away, but he wasn't going to let her get away so easily.

"You have to know," he said softly, "that I feel the same. I felt it before in that cave. I tried to write it off as traumatic stress, but after we were home, the feeling never went away. I know I've been terrible to you. I don't even deserve you as a friend, JC, but I want…I want you to be more than that."

She pulled away to look him in the eye, to see that he meant every word. "JC, I-"

She put a finger to his lips. "Don't say it," she said, her breathing getting heavy against his chest.

"Then let me show you," he said, cupping her face with one hand. She looked up at him, a look of fear and joy in her eyes. His brought his face closer to hers. It was now or never. He knew he was putting everything on the line, the biggest gamble of his life. They were mere inches apart, her breath warm on his face. As he closed the last of the space between them she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into the kiss.

He knew he had felt this before. Somewhere in the back of his mind from his old, drunken days, he knew he had felt this before, felt her sweet lips on his, but this was different. This was sweeter, more gentle. He had kissed countless women before, but this was different. This was intimate, ecstasy compared to anything else he knew he had or would ever have with anyone else.

"Mom?" a voice said from the front door.

They broke away and looked over to see a very hurt, angry Darren standing in the foyer.

"Darren? How did you…" The words were caught in JC's throat. Even Tony was at a loss for words.

"I was worried. I took a cab. Pepper caught me in the driveway, told me how to get in. How could you?" he said.

"Darren, you don't understand. It's-"

"Don't try to tell me I don't understand you lying, murdering bitch!" he exclaimed.

Both of them were taken aback. Tony knew he had gone too far, and he would not stand for it. He would understand a level of anger from the boy, but this was so much more than that.

"You watch your mouth," he said sternly, pointing a finger at the boy, "you little-"

He was stopped by JC putting her arm out over his chest signaling she would handle it, a hurt yet stern look on her face.

"You were never going to tell me the truth about dad were you?" Darren accused.

"Darren, you were too young at the time. I couldn't tell you," JC explained.

"No. That's a pathetic excuse. You just didn't want me to look at you differently, to see you for what you truly are. You left him to die that day in the desert. You wouldn't save dad, but you'd risk your life to save a pathetic piece of crap like him. Why mom? Why?"

"Who told you this?" she questioned.

"You did," he admitted tersely. "You thought you were so careful, but I hate to tell you this, mom, but you talk in your sleep. Most of the time, it was just yelling. I kept waiting to hear you tell me that it was just a nightmare, just a dream, but you never said anything. It wasn't until grandma died that she confirmed what I already knew. You killed him, and now you get together with this trash who tried to rape you and nearly got you killed more than once. Why?"

"It's been nearly ten years. I've finally managed to move on with my life," she said sternly.

"This is how you move on? By forsaking dad's memory for this pig?"

She eyed him with a ferocity Tony had not seen in her eyes in nearly four months.

"Your ass, in the car, now," she ordered in a menacing tone.

"I'd rather walk," he answered, turning to the door.

"Young man, you will get in that car right now, if you ever want to come back in the house."

He turned and gave her a scornful look before storming out the door. JC let out a breath looking more defeated than before.

"Do you want to go after him?"

"He'll be in the car. He has too many electronics at home, and despite how smart he may be, he doesn't know how to get past the security system," she said, gathering up her purse.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Tony asked, touching her arm.

"I'll take care of Darren."

"Don't be too harsh on him. I know he was out of line, but he's just angry. I know what it feels like to lose both parents. He thinks he's lost you, I guess. I can't blame him for feeling the way he does."

"I know how to handle my son, Tony," she snapped. She immediately looked like she regretted it. "I'm sorry," she said letting out a breath.

"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"I think it will be better if I didn't come back, Tony."

He looked at her confused. Had she really just said that?

"Darren needs a father figure right now, and, no offense, you haven't had the best track record for doing the right thing. I was wrong to be so selfish, Tony. I have to think of what's best for him. I'm sorry," she said and rushed to the door.

Tony couldn't believe it, couldn't comprehend what had just happened. After nearly four months of hard work, trying to become a better man, trying to atone for all his faults he finally thought that he had done something right. The one person who had finally helped him change, forced him to change was walking out, and there was nothing he could do to stop her. Maybe he was only fooling himself. People like her didn't get together with people like him, not seriously. He shuffled back downstairs to the basement and slumped on the couch, forcing himself to hold back tears that wanted to come. He figured they weren't worth it. She was out of his league and now out of his life, permanently.

* * *

"I can't believe you would embarrass me in such a way. What do you have to say for yourself, young man?" JC scolded her son who was sitting in the back seat of the SUV.

"What? Are you sorry your boyfriend knows the truth about you?"

"You listen here. First, cut the attitude. You're already in over your head with how long you are going to be grounded. Second, Tony Stark and I are not a couple. He was a friend and nothing more."

"Not based on what I saw," Darren murmured under his breath.

"Shut it, mister," she snapped, "And third, he already knew about what happened to your father. That wasn't what embarrassed me. You storming in there making such a big scene over something that we should have discussed in private, that's what was embarrassing. My own son acting like a five year old having a tantrum. I know I taught you better than that."

"Yeah, well you also taught me how to lie and hide things from the people you claim to love."

"You don't even know the full story. You barely knew your father, and if you did, you would know that he was not a great man. He was a coward who disobeyed orders that would have saved his life. His death was not my fault," she defended.

"It was your responsibility to stop him, and you didn't. You let him run out in that mine field. You let him die."

"I did everything I was supposed to. If I had stopped to save your father, there would have been no leader, and everyone would have died. I did what was best for the squads," she said and fiddled around for her cell phone. She thought she had grabbed it but was now aware that it was not in sight. "Well crap. I left my cell on the front table. We have to go back."

"Anything to see that pig," Darren muttered.

"I'm just going in and going out. He won't even know that I'm there."

Darren mumbled something under his breath, but JC paid him no attention. She was in no mood to put up with anymore of his antics. She had finally found a shred of happiness, and Darren had to remind her that she wasn't allowed. Despite the fact that right now she didn't want to have anything to do with her son, she still had to think of him first. There were plenty of Tony Starks. There was only one Darren. She tried to convince herself of this, but the voice in the back of her head told her this wasn't true. Yes, there was only one Darren, but there was only one Tony, too. She had watched him change from the selfish, egotistical drunkard into someone new, someone who was finally taking responsibility for his actions, and it made her proud to know him and to be his friend. Friend…could she even say they were friends anymore? He had poured his heart out to her and she had just left him.

She tried to put these thoughts past her as she pulled back into driveway of Tony's mansion. As she unbuckled her seat belt she noticed another car in the driveway that did not belong.

"What is Obadiah doing here?" she thought aloud, recognizing the black vehicle.

"He is a business partner," Darren pointed out dryly.

"Stane is trying to take over the company. He isn't exactly a welcome guest anymore, especially at this hour," she said, noting that it was almost nine. "Stay here. I'll only be a minute," she and grabbed her pistol from the console that lay next to her old reactor. She had meant to throw it away a long time ago but had simply forgotten about it. After checking the safety lock and seeing that there was a full magazine loaded, she tucked the weapon away in her pants behind her and pulled down her jacket.

"You don't plan to shoot him, do you?"

"Just being safe. I've got a bad feeling," she said and exited the car. "Stay here."

"Not a problem," he said disinterested and lay down on the seat.

JC shook her head as she made her way to the front door and opened it. She made a cursory glance of the entry way and living room and noted that neither Tony nor Stane were there. She thought it was odd but assumed that they may have gone downstairs. She knew that Tony didn't really like having other people in his garage, but at the moment there wasn't much he could do to stop anyone from going down there, and she didn't hear any indication that anything was wrong, so she assumed everything was all right. Quickly locating her phone on the entry table she noticed that the screen was glowing with the message of one missed call on the display.

She looked through the call history, and Pepper's name popped up.

"What could Pepper want?" she mused to herself.

The phone began to vibrate signaling that someone was trying to call her. Pepper's name appeared on the screen.

"Must be important," she said and was about to answer it when a strong arm came across her while another covered her mouth. She immediately reacted, poised to send the assailant flat on his back. She grabbed her attackers hand and was about to let out a yell when all of a sudden her voice caught in her throat and her muscles refused to move. A small shrieking noise just barely audible could be heard as she felt drops of blood run from her ears.

Her legs gave way, ready to drop her to the ground as the strong arms gently lowered them. For a moment she thought that Tony was behind it, and if he was, this was a sick joke to play on person. She stared at the floor unable to move her eyes to see who her assailant was. The hand came back to her face and turned it to see none other than Obadiah Stane.

Anger immediately rushed through her wanting to tear him to shreds, but she couldn't. Whatever he had used to paralyze her had worked incredibly well.

"This would have been so much better, if you had just stayed away," Stane said in a low voice as he eyed her. "I would have preferred you lived. Pity," he said as his fingers began to wander, "You really are a beauty underneath that temper."

She felt sick to her stomach. How dare he even think those thoughts aloud. She wished more than anything to take a knife, cut his manhood up into tiny pieces and sauté them before ramming them down his throat. There were so many ways she had wanted to torture him slowly, but she was helpless, helpless to his cruelty. Whatever he had planned for her, she wished he would just get it over with quickly.

"Unfortunately, I don't have time to play with you right now. That fool of a boss you have will be up here soon, and I would hate to miss this reunion," Stane said with sickening smirk as she skulked off in to the shadows.

She heard Tony's footsteps as he ascended from the garage. She wanted to scream, wanted to warn him to stay away, but it was useless. Her voice refused to move, her tongue feeling numb in her mouth. It was too late. They were both going to die now, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Some body guard she had turned out to be.

* * *

As Tony came upstairs ready to go to bed early, the phone began to ring. He looked to the couch, searching for the wayward phone beneath the sheep skin pillows. He looked to the caller ID to see Pepper's picture with her name beneath it. He sat down to hear her report when out of the corner of his eye he noticed something at the front door. He hit the green phone button as he turned to see what was in the hallway. As he did, a clear view of JC lying on the floor came to him as small, shrieking noise entered his ears. He went rigid as his muscles stopped working and he knew in that split second what was going on.

"Breathe," came Obadiah's voice as he held Tony and slowly lowered him back on the couch.

Pepper's voice could be heard on the other end of the line calling his name, but Obadiah hung up on her and tossed the phone aside. The high pitched noise ceased as Obadiah brought his face down and showed Tony the device that he had already known had caused the noise and the paralysis.

"You remember this one don't you?" Obadiah said.

Of course he remembered. Sonic Paralysis was supposed to be used as an interrogation device or any other military purpose that could be thought up. The government had shot it down though. Cruel and unusual punishment, they had called it. He thought all the devices had been destroyed. Stane had obviously kept his little toy for such an occasion.

"It's a shame the government didn't approve. There are so many applications for causing short term paralysis," Stane said as he came around the couch to look tony in the eye. "When I ordered the hit on you," he said, removing the ear plugs designed to block out the sonic pulse, "I thought I was killing the Golden Goose." He proceeded to remove a device from a small case that bore a remarkable resemblance to the shape of his reactor. "It just so happened," he said as he attached the device to the chest piece through his shirt, "you had one last golden egg to give." With that Stane removed the arc reactor from his chest, but had yet to disengage it from the base plate.

Stane looked at the reactor with lust for a moment before looking back at Tony who was trying to process everything that was happening. His most trusted friend had not only betrayed him but was now going to kill him and possibly JC, too. How had he let it get this far? How could he not have seen this coming?

"You think just because you have an idea, it belongs to you?" Stane challenged, "Your father, he helped give us the atomic bomb. Now, where would our world be today, if he was as selfish as you?" With that he gave a yank on the device and removed the piece completely from his chest.

Tony stared in horror at his life source hanging in front of him. He knew how long he had before the paralysis would wear off and how long his heart would survive since Pepper had so conveniently pulled out the magnet. This was not good. His mind swam at the thought of what he might do with the device, but only one possible answer came to mind. He had built a suit, and he needed the battery.

Obadiah took a moment to sit beside him and marvel at the device. "Ah, Tony, this is your Ninth Symphony, your master piece. The next generation of weapons with this at its heart. It'll put the balance of power in the right hands. Our hands."

Tony writhed on the inside at thought of Stane using his technology to make more killing machines, better killing machines. What he would have given for just the power to spit in Stane's eye at that moment.

"I wish you could see my prototype," Stane said like a school boy ready to show off his new model airplane. "It's not as conservative as yours," he said and placed the arc reactor neatly in the padded case and shut it. "Too bad you had to go and involve Pepper and your body guard. I would have preferred that they both live," he said and walked over to JC.

He watched as Obadiah turned her over and removed her jacket. With a sick smile he put his hands under her shirt and removed her arc reactor, holding it up in victory. Tony wanted to strangle him for violating his friend, his girl like that. His girl? For a brief moment, Tony liked the sound of it, but his thoughts were brought back to the more serious matter at hand. He saw the lust in Stane's eyes, knew he wanted to do so much more to the defenseless woman, but he hurried off. Pepper had apparently rattled his cage more than Tony originally realized.

JC's breath became more ragged as fear had set in for her. She knew as well as he did that she would not survive long without the reactor. She still had her magnet which would last between ten and fifteen minutes, but Tony had no clue how long she had been lying there. By the time the effects had worn off for either of them would be too late for her. Tony could last at least fifteen minutes without power or the magnet, he figured. JC would barely last two if even that. There was nothing he could do except pray for a miracle.

* * *

**AN: Woo hoo! Another update! I know this one was rather long, but it was so hard to break it up any more. The last two chapters are probably going to be fairly long as this story comes to a close. As always, let me know what you think, and for those of you who have any suggestions for the upcoming sequal, feel free to tell me. I'm always interested in new ideas. Who knows? It could be used and you will be credited for it. Until next time, Adios!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Every minute that passed became more agonizing than the last. As the time dragged on, Tony slowly regained limited movement , but it was still not enough to do anything. He watched as JC's mobility improved and silently encouraged her to keep going, to keep fighting what he knew must have felt like a losing battle for her. He watched as she stretched out, reaching for a cell phone that he recognized as hers laying several feet away.

She lunged and crawled, each time moving just a few more inches than the last. He wasn't sure who she would call to help them. There was no telling where Pepper was or if she'd be any help. Even Rhodey would be useless. 911? Still too slow.

Moments later her fingers wrapped around the small device and began to tap the keys, her breath sounding like she had just run ten miles. It had already been over ten minutes. There was no way she could be saved. He had already considered trying to give her the spare that was sitting in a glass case that Pepper had made for him, but his math told him it wouldn't work. It would create too much power and probably overload. And her spare was nowhere to be found. He hated to watch her like this, to watch her die in a slow, excruciating way. He knew that once the magnet gave out, the barbs near her lungs would puncture the thin tissue, and she would drown in her own blood. He didn't want to give up on her like this, not after all she had done for him, but there was nothing left, nothing he could do except watch her gasp for her last breath.

She put the phone to her ear and waited for whoever was on the other end to answer. It hadn't taken long.

"Darren," she said hoarsely. Of course! How did he not think of that? The boy was right there sitting in the car. But what could he do?

"Listen…console…spare…RT…hurry," she gasped. Tony felt his heart leap in his chest. Whether it was for joy or because he was starting to have a heart attack he wasn't sure. He was hoping for the former. JC had kept her spare RT in her car. He knew that the piece of junk wouldn't run very well for very long, but it would keep her alive long enough to find Obadiah and take hers back.

Tony listened as the front door slammed open and the distraught boy ran in, reactor in hand.

"Mom!" he exclaimed when he saw her body, "Shit! What did you do to her?"

"Explain…later…hurry," she gasped, the words barely coming out as she rolled over, her breath sounding weaker every second.

Darren held the piece in his hand as he knelt over her, a look of confusion and urgency on his face. He knew what was wrong, but he looked scared to do what he needed to.

"Do it, damn it," Tony managed from his position on the couch, "There's no time for decency."

Darren scowled at him as if trying to say that he wasn't helping the situation. Without another moment's hesitation he lifted her shirt exposing the hole in her back.

"How do I do this?" he demanded.

"Plug the end into the base plate," Tony explained as he tried to force his limbs to move.

Darren did as instructed. Tony heard the all too familiar buzz of the connection as JC let out a yelp.

"Shit! Was that supposed to happen?" Darren exclaimed, looking to Tony.

"It's normal," Tony said as he lurched forward, his legs still heavy from the paralysis sending him to the floor.

"What are you doing? What's going on?"

Tony got his arms beneath him and tried to push himself up. It was a pathetic attempt but proved successful.

"I have to get to the basement," he said hoarsely as the pain in his chest increased, "I have to get the other RT."

Darren stalked over to him and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, stopping him in his tracks.

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't just let you die?" he said in a low voice, "You have done nothing but cause my family pain. Why should I let you live?"

"Stane…He's going to kill a lot of people, if I don't get that other chest piece in me right now."

Darren looked from him to his mother and back, obviously debating whether or not he was telling the truth. "If I help you, can you stop him?"

Tony's vision started to go hazy as the pain in his chest doubled. He could barely look the teen in the eye let alone give a coherent answer.

Darren shook him, forced him to look at him. "Can you stop him? Yes or No?" he asked more forcefully.

"Yes," he answered.

With that Darren let him go and ran to the basement, hopefully to bring back the other reactor.

Tony crawled over to JC who had said nothing through the ordeal. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing had become so shallow he wondered if Darren had been too late. He sat up beside her, using every last muscle to he had to hold himself up as he took her hand.

"JC," he said weakly, "JC, answer me."

She remained silent and motionless. Tony felt the toll his heart was taking, felt as his muscles slowly gave out on him, forcing him to slump over. He didn't want to give up, not yet. He had to stay with her, had to make sure she would pull through. He vaguely heard the sound of Darren's footsteps as he charged back into the living room and knelt down beside him.

"Hold still," he ordered as he moved in front of him and inserted the old reactor. A jolt went through Tony as the connected with the base plate. His arms that had been holding him up gave way, sending him to the floor. Darren's voice sounded distant as his vision slowly darkened, his heartbeat hollow in his ears. He was tired. His heart ached from the exertion and the barbs that had tried to claim his life. He wanted to rest, needed to rest.

"Tony?" he heard. Who was that? Why were they disturbing his sleep?

"Tony!" he heard more urgently, the voice becoming clearer. "Darren, what happened?"

"I don't know. All I know is Obadiah took those things from them. I gave them the originals, then he collapsed, and mom still won't wake up. I don't know what to do," Darren explained with a quivering voice.

Tony felt his body move, felt as someone shook him. "Tony? Tony, wake up man," Rhodey said.

He slowly opened his eyes realizing this wasn't a dream. He wasn't dead. What about JC? Where was JC? His eyes flew open as he reached up and grabbed his shoulders to steady himself.

"JC," he said hoarsely, "Is she okay?"

"She's right there," Rhodey answered, showing him JC's still prone form.

"JC," he said as he lifted himself up, hovering over her. She made no indication that she heard him. Her chest moved up and down slowly with her still shallow breathing, but from her still pale appearance from the device, it was hard to tell if she was okay or not. He put his fingers to her neck feeling for a pulse that was faintly there.

"JC, you have to wake up. You have to wake up now," he urged her. No response. "JC, please. I need your help, JC. I need you." Again there was no response. Tony clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. Damn Stane. Damn him to hell for what he had done. "JC, damn it, I did not save you in that cave and carry you across a God forsaken desert to have you die like this!" he exclaimed, "You're a fighter. Fight, damn it! Open your damn eyes!"

She took in a deep, shaky breath before saying weakly, "Will you stop yelling at me."

Tony smiled feeling himself about to cry over hearing her voice, but he restrained himself. There was no time for that.

JC opened her eyes and smiled up at him. Tony pulled her up into his arms and held her there. She was alive, alive and safe in his arms again. She returned his embrace warmly. He pulled away to look her in the eye.

"Don't you ever scare me like that again. I thought I'd lost you," he said.

"I'm fine. We need to get out of here. Stane's probably already got his suit up and running by now. We have to stop him," she said and pushed herself up. Tony stumbled to his feet with some help from Rhodey and pulled her up with him.

"What are you talking about? What suit?" Rhodey questioned.

"We'll explain later. Stane's probably building the suit at Stark Industries. That's gonna be our best bet," Tony reasoned. "Wait. Pepper. Where's Pepper?" he asked, remembering Stane's threat.

"She with five agents about to arrest Obadiah," Rhodey answered.

"That's not gonna be enough," Tony mused. If Stane had a suit, five men would be little more than bugs on a windshield. "Come on. We have to hurry," he said, stumbling for the stairs.

"Tony, elevator," JC suggested and helped him to the elevator. The slow ride felt like an eternity with each second. If only he could run, but Tony knew he would just fall flat on his face if he had tried. The doors finally opened and JC hurried ahead of him to the computer, typing in the password to unlock the machinery that held the armor.

"Are you sure you'll be able to handle the suit, Tony?" she asked.

"I'll be fine. We don't have a lot of options here," he said and kicked off his shoes and tried to go for his flight suit.

"There's no time for you to change, Tony," JC said, "You'll have to fly it in what you have on."

He knew she was right, but that didn't make it much better. The flight suit made the armor more comfortable to wear.

The machinery came up from the floor, revealing the pieces of the suit, ready to assemble the armor. Tony stepped forward into the feet as the machinery brought the armor around him and reassembled it. Tony was just happy he had managed to repair all the damage before Stane had paid his little visit.

Tony saw from his peripheral that Rhodey was practically drooling from the sight of the armor. Tony would have grinned if the mission at hand wasn't so important. Pepper was in danger, and Stane was insane enough to kill anyone who got in his way.

"That's the coolest thing I've ever seen," Rhodey said in awe, pulling Tony from his previous thoughts for a moment.

"Not bad, huh?" he said as the armor finished, the faceplate still up. "JC, I'll need you here."

"No way, Tony. If you think I'm just going to-"

"Please," he said, taking her by the shoulders, "This is going to be dangerous. Stane won't just have repulsors on his suit. He's gonna have the largest possible guns on there, and I don't want to see you getting killed. Got it?"

He looked in to her eyes for some type of confirmation. He was not going to put her in that kind of danger. He refused to.

"I understand," she said, a look of hurt in her eyes, but also understanding. He pulled her in and gave her a kiss which she returned. Now he knew what he was fighting for, what was important to him. He was sure now more than ever that she was what he needed, the force that drove him through those months of torture in that cave, that drove him to change even after they had returned. He knew it, and he was going to do anything to keep her safe.

"I'll be back," he promised and stepped toward the wrecked speedster, blasting it away with a shot from his hand.

"Need me to do anything else?" Rhodey asked.

The faceplate came down with clunk over Tony's face as he said, "Keep the skies clear," and flew out through the hole he had created several nights before.

"Damn," Rhodey said as he watched Tony fly away.

JC looked to the Mark II armor that sat several feet away. Tempting as it was, she knew it wouldn't fit her. That and her RT probably wouldn't be able to handle it what with it being incomplete.

"Come on, Rhodey," she said, getting into guard mode. Despite what Tony had said, she was still his bodyguard. She wasn't about to let him go into that kind of danger.

"What?" he responded, looking at her dumbly, "Tony told you to stay here."

"Do I look like I take orders from Tony when it concerns safety?" she said as she rummaged through everything on Tony's desk looking for the comm. piece that connected with Tony's suit.

"So where do you think you're going?"

"You're going to take me to Stark Industries. Then you need to get to the base and do what he said. Keep those jets off him."

"Wait just a sec," Darren objected, "What about me?"

"You," she said, pointing at him, "are going to stay right here. This is no place for you, Darren."

"Mom, you heard what he said. Big guns. You could get killed by this guy," Darren pleaded.

"Darren," she said moving towards him, "you and I made an agreement a long time ago. This is my job. It's what I do. I can't stop here just because big guns are involved. Now, stay here. Rhodey, let's go. I'll meet you at the driveway."

JC ran out the garage and headed to her car at the top of the driveway. Rhodey followed behind in the silver Audi leaving Darren in the garage. When JC came to her car she opened up the back and lifted up the floor board. Rhodey came up behind her, and she heard as he gasped at what he saw.

"You're not taking all of that, are you?" he asked.

She pulled up an M-16 from the various weapons that were stored there.

"Not everything," she said, grabbing several magazines of ammo for the gun and the pistol that was still stowed in the waist band of her jeans. "If Stane is going to have as many big guns as Tony says, I'm going to need a few big guns of my own," she said as she loaded and cocked the gun, "Let's go. We're far enough behind as it is."

They both got into the car, and Rhodey sped off towards Stark Industries.

"So what exactly is the plan here?" Rhodey asked as he drove.

"There isn't a plan right now. For now, I'm just going to have to play it by ear, see what he's got," she said.

"Are you serious?" he exclaimed, "I thought you had a real plan."

"Under normal circumstances, I would. I've never gone up against this kind of thing before, so, I figure a plan will just come to me," she explained.

"And if one doesn't?"

"I'll think of something," she assured him, "I will. I just have to see what I'm up against."

"I hope so, for your sake."

The drive seemed to go by quickly as adrenaline began to kick in. Now she was in the zone. This was the moment she always lived for and yet hated. In that moment she felt like she could take on the world, knew that she could, but as soon as someone else's life was thrown into the mix, that was when she dreaded it.

"What's that thing for?" Rhodey asked, motioning to the earpiece in her lap, breaking her from her thoughts.

"It connects to Tony's suit," she said and turned it on, placing it over her ear. Chatter began coming through Tony's helmet as JC could hear Pepper's voice.

"Obadiah, he's gone insane!"

"I know. You have to get out of there!"

Pepper's voice continued to ramble as she tried to explain what was going on when a loud crunching noise came over the mic along with the sounds of mechanisms whirring. Whatever Stane had built, it sounded a lot bigger than JC had originally anticipated. An instant later, Pepper's screams could be heard along with Tony shouting Stane's name. From there it was indiscernible as to what was happening as Tony grunted and groaned.

"Please tell me we are almost there," JC said, covering the microphone.

"We've got a small problem," he said pointing ahead at the security gate.

"There's no time. Ram it," JC ordered.

"Are you crazy?"

"Tony can afford a little scratch. Now, do it."

"And the guards? You think they won't do anything?" he pointed out.

"They're too distracted. Now, ram it, or I swear I will shoot you with this gun," she threatened, holding up the M-16.

Rhodey gave her one last look of indignation as he floored the gas pedal and broke through the security gate, splintering it into pieces. The guard in the shack looked like he was about to chase after them, but he gave up as soon as he started. He must have figured there was no point.

They saw Pepper standing in front of the main factory, horror on her face as she stared across the lot. Behind her were two rather large holes in the pavement, more than likely caused by Stane. Rhodey came to a screeching halt beside her, JC jumped out, ordering him to hurry to the base.

"Pepper," she called to the distraught woman. She looked over to JC as if she had seen a ghost. "Pepper, where's Tony and Stane?"

"Tony just came flying out of nowhere and went through the ground with Stane. I think they're out on the highway," she said, her voice still shaky.

"Stay here," JC ordered and headed to the roof to get a better view of the highway. A she looked out on the road she could see Tony being dragged beneath a Land Rover. She held back a gasp as she winced. That was when she saw it. A hulk of metal and weapons charged forward and after grabbing a poor motorcyclist, bashed Tony with the bike. Before he could even get up again Stane was kicking him around and tossing him to the ground, crushing him with one giant foot. After stepping on him again, he threw Tony into a city bus and fired a missile into it.

JC looked on in horror, thinking for a moment that he had been blown up. His red form went flying up into the air. He caught himself, hovering in the air for a moment. In the next minute the boots of Stane's suit exploded and slowly lifted him into the air. Tony took the opportunity to shoot up farther, gaining as much altitude as possible.

"Tony, what the hell do you think you're doing?" JC demanded as she watched him disappear from view.

"Where have you been, JC?" he asked in reply.

"That doesn't matter. What are you doing? He can go to the same altitude as you, and you ice up eventually. What do you plan to accomplish?" she asked again.

"Don't you remember I changed the metal," he reminded her. Of course, now she remembered. He had said he had changed the metal so he could fly at the higher altitudes without the ice problem. With any luck, Obadiah wouldn't know about the icing problem. As he flew she heard Jarvis giving off power levels for Tony's suit.

JC couldn't help but feel a pang of worry for him. He had never tried to operate the suit under such conditions. If he didn't reach altitude before power ran out, it would be for nothing. And if power ran out while he was up there…She didn't want to think about it. He was going to make it. He had to. She couldn't stand the thought of losing him now, despite what she had said earlier. What Darren needed and what she wanted didn't mesh very well, but for an instant, she didn't care. She wanted to forget it, but she knew she needed him, needed that crazy son of a bitch in her life. She thought of the irony. The one man she hated most was the one man she loved the most.

She listened over the microphone as Stane caught up to him. She could practically see Tony smirking in triumph as the sound of a clunk was heard. She wanted to jump for joy until she heard Jarvis chime in with another power update. With only two percent Tony was quickly falling, and it wasn't long before he was back in sight, heading for the roof.

Tony's repulsors flashed and sparked as power slowly cut in and out. In moments he found himself back on the roof of the factory.

"Tony," came JC's voice, but it sounded much closer than the through the comm. system. He looked over to see JC kneeling beside him. He removed one gauntlet knowing he needed to get out of the suit and lifted his faceplate.

"JC," he breathed, still not believing what he saw. "What are you doing here?" he asked, finally pulling himself from his stupor, "I told you to stay away."

Before she was able to answer, a loud thud came from behind him. He turned to see Stane's massive form as he laughed, "Nice try."

His faceplate clunked back down as he put one arm instinctively in front of JC to protect her and lifted his other hand to fire at Stane. A bare hand came up and Tony realized that his gauntlet was already gone. Without a second's hesitation he pushed JC out of the way as Stane landed a hit, sending him back several feet.

JC pulled out the M-16 that she had been holding and fired several rounds at Stane, distracting him for a moment. Every shot ricocheted off his armor, but it drew his attention long enough for Tony to run up and land a punch. It had little effect except to increase Stane's anger. Stane wrapped both hulking arms around Tony's middle and began to squeeze, crushing his armor around him. Sparks flew and fluids were squirting out as he felt the force on his body, his breath rushing from his lungs as he gasped for dear life. Now he knew how JC must have felt.

"Weapons," he groaned, trying to think of something. Jarvis listed off each weapon as offline as JC shot off several more rounds at him. He heard her grunt and saw from what was left of his peripheral as she backed off clutching her left shoulder. With little time left and nothing to speak of for weapons, he had only one option.

"Flares!" he ordered. Sparks went flying everywhere causing Stane to drop him, blinding him momentarily.

"Very clever, Tony," Stane mused as he went looking for his missing prey.

"JC, are you okay?" he whispered.

"I'm fine. Just grazed by that damn ricochet," she moaned.

"Potts."

"Tony," came Pepper's relieved voice.

"We've got to overload the reactor, blast the roof," he ordered.

"How are you going to do that?" she asked.

"You're gonna do it," he said, feeling nothing but sympathy for her having to put her in that position. "Open all the circuits, then hit the master bypass. It's gonna fry everything up here," he explained quickly.

"Tony, Darren ran inside just a minute ago. What about him?" she asked.

"What?" JC exclaimed, trying to keep her voice down, "How the hell did he get here?"

"He just drove here," she explained weakly.

"Potts, focus," Tony commanded. Darren would be fine for the moment. "Get to the reactor."

"Ok, I'm going in now," she said nervously.

"Wait until we've cleared the roof. I'll buy you some time."

"And if you see Darren in there, make sure to tell him his ass is mine when this is over," JC growled.

Stane moved closer to Tony as the smoke from the flares began to clear. Tony moved quickly around the vent he had been hiding behind until he had Stane's back to him.

"Tony, you've gotta get him to open up his suit. If you can, I can get a hit in," JC whispered as Tony inched around.

In one fell swoop he hopped on to Stane's back and latched on. As he thrashed about trying to reach him, the HUD scanned the numerous wires that protruded from Stane's neck and found the targeting system and visual sensors.

"This looks important," he said and yanked at the cables. Now Stane was furious. He reached back and grabbed Tony by the head and jerked him off, sending him flying to the skylight that sat over the Arc Reactor, his helmet firmly grasped in Stane's iron fist. Stane's suit opened up, revealing the smirking man.

_JC, you better have a good plan_, Tony thought as he stared up at Stane.

Several shots rang out, sparks from ricochets at Stane's feet. Stane looked down half surprised that she was shooting his feet. What was she doing? She had a clear shot of his body, and she shot his feet!

"Give up, Stane," JC growled from Stane's shoulders, pistol pointed at his head.

Tony smirked. That was his girl. He had to hand it to her. Her plans tended to work out better than his.

"What's to stop me from killing him?" Stane threatened.

"Which do you think is faster: your arm or my finger?" she challenged driving the muzzle into his temple.

"You won't do it. You want me alive," Stane challenged.

She removed the pistol from his temple and drove it into his shoulder before firing off one shot. Stane cried in pain, his body visibly slumping over. She placed the now warm muzzle back to his temple, proving her point.

"Do you care to push your luck further? That shot won't kill you, but this one will. Stand down," she hissed.

"I'd rather die, bitch," he cursed, turning his head to her.

She gave him a glare of hatred as she pulled the trigger on him, ready to end his life. The hammer cocked back and struck nothing, an audible click uttered from its empty barrel. JC stared in horror. She had misjudged her shots. Stane smirked up at her as he reached around and grabbed her arm wrenching her off him and tossed her. Her body flew through the air like a doll before colliding with the wall at the edge of the roof, her body lying limp, her limbs skewed about in unnatural positions.

Tony stared at her prone form, anger and fear welling up inside him. His limbs refused to move. He wanted to be at her side, make sure she was even alive, but he was frozen, paralyzed once more, by fear now instead of technology. She couldn't be alive. There was no possible way she could have survived. Tony felt his own bruises from the multiple times Stane had tossed him around, and he was in a suit. Unprotected flesh could never withstand a hit like that.

"I never had a taste for this sort of thing, but I must admit, I'm deeply enjoying the suit," Stane said as he crushed Tony's helmet in his hand and tossed it to Tony's feet. He averted his gaze from JC to him, detestation in his eyes.

"I see now why you hired her, Tony," he taunted, "She was good, very stupid, but good. I'm sure she was just as good in your bed."

Tony got to his knees, hatred his only fuel. He dared to kill her in that desert, treated her like crap in his own home, violated her, took her life source away, and now he had broken her, destroyed everything of her that was good. How dare he have the gall to even insinuate she would sleep with him. Tony wanted to rip him apart piece by piece with his bare hands, wanted him to feel every ounce of his hatred.

"You outdid yourself, Tony. Your father would be proud."

_My father would only be proud with your death, Stane_, he thought.

With his injured arm, Stane raised his machine gun and fired. Tony raised his only gloved hand and spread out the flaps trying to protect his face as the glass around him began to shatter into pieces, sending through the hole in the middle of the web design. He wrapped his arms around the edge holding on for dear life as he heard the buzz of the reactor below.

"Tony!" Pepper screamed from below. He glanced down at her, dizziness coming over him for a moment from the height. He could see her form clearly and that of Darren who was clutching something glowing in his hand.

_Smart kid,_ he thought, _Too bad it it's useless now._

"How ironic, Tony," Stane applauded, "Trying to rid the world of weapons, you gave it its best one ever."

"Pepper," he called down to her, hoping to God she could hear him.

"Now, I'm gonna kill you with it," Stane said and aimed his other arm which was equipped with missiles. He fired, the shot missing by several feet. "You knocked out my targeting sensors," Stane scolded lightly, as if talking to a child.

"Time to hit the button," Tony ordered, getting one last look at JC's prone body.

"You told me not to," she yelled up.

Of all the times she chose to question him, this was not the time or place.

"Hold still you little prick," Stane said and fired again. Again he missed.

"Just do it!" he yelled, wishing she would just get it over with.

"You'll die!" she screamed desperately.

Stane's next hit landed closer, causing Tony to lose his grip with one hand.

"Push it!" he yelled. He knew he was going to die. He might as well be. JC was gone. There was nothing left for him. If he was going down like this, he was going to take the Devil with him. Tony watched as she pressed the button and Darren rushed her out of the way of the flaring reactor. Bolts of electricity flew in every direction as the reactor erupted in an explosion white light, the force of it tossing Tony into the air, landing several feet away from the blast.

Stane stayed anchored to his position as the blinding light came up, the electricity frying every system of the suit, burning his body from the sheer amount of power. The blast continued until it reached the sky in a pillar of light and energy, charging the sky like a wild storm and blacking out half of the city in its wake.

Stane's heavy form fell forward in a heap of iron and cords, breaking everything in its path as he landed on the Arc reactor, causing an explosion as the suit ruptured its casing.

Tony rolled away as a mushroom of smoke and fire erupted from the hole in the building, feeling the last of his power drained. He lay there silently, feeling as his little reactor slowly flittered and eventually died down to little more than a spark. She was gone. His guard, his girl, his life was gone. He wished the blast had killed him as it had Stane, but alas, Fate favored the life of the most powerful. For once, why couldn't he have the one thing he desired?

The small reactor in his chest slowly came back to life, glowing stronger with each passing second. Tony just wanted to cry. Why did he once again have to be perfectly fine while she was dead or dying? He wanted to force every tear to fall from his eyes, but they would not come. All those years of forcing himself not to cry had finally turned on him and held them back.

Moments later he could hear the voices of Pepper, Darren and even Rhodey as they approached the roof.

"Tony? Tony, are you all right?" Pepper asked, her voice distraught.

"I'm fine," Tony said, steeling his voice. It hurt him to hold back the emotion, but for Pepper's sake, he would hold it in. He knew that she relied on him for what little support he could give her. He couldn't afford to cave in now. Perhaps later, in his room, when he was alone. With some help from Rhodey and Darren, Tony got up into a sitting position and started to peel off the armor piece by piece.

"Stark," Darren demanded, facing him, "where is she? Where is my mother?"

Tony looked back to JC's body, his fists clenched. He couldn't bear the sight and looked away. Darren saw where he had looked and rushed to her side. Tony's hands shook as he removed the rest of the armor from his chest and tossed it aside. As he worked on the rest of the armor that encased his legs, he watched from his peripheral as Darren gently rolled JC over, checking her vitals for the life Tony knew would not be there.

"She's alive!" he cried.

Tony felt his heart jump and his body go numb as he looked her, his eyes wide. He could hardly believe what he had heard. She had lived, but for how long had yet to be seen. He forced his legs to pick him up and carry him towards her. Pepper tried to urge him not to move so quickly, but he did not listen. He was not about to leave her there, not again. With some help from Rhodey he limped over to her, praying that there was still time to save her.

"How bad is it, Darren?" Tony asked, his voice nearly caught in his throat.

"I can't tell," Darren said as he continued to look her over, "Her shoulder is dislocated, several ribs look broken. There's probably more, but I'm no doctor. She needs a hospital."

Tony saw the pleading look in his eye and nodded his head.

"You three get her to the hospital. I'll get out of this thing and get home," he said and moved to leave the roof. His legs, still weak from over exertion and lack of adrenaline began to give out.

"You are something, aren't you?" Darren said as he caught Tony, Putting an arm over his shoulder. "Rhodey, Pepper, can you take my mom to the hospital? I'll take him home," he offered.

"Are you sure, Darren?" Pepper asked, a look of confusion on her features.

"I'm positive. Now go. There's no time to waits," Darren urged, a level of maturity in him Tony had never seen before. "Take this with you," he said, handing over JC's new reactor, "She'll need that before long."

With that he lugged Tony down the stairs on the side of the building to JC's maroon SUV and helped into the backseat. He then got into the driver seat and drove off quickly. As the ride went on in silence Tony couldn't help but wonder what he had just seen. First, Darren was being somewhat nice to him. He should have been with his mother, not him. Second, Darren was driving. JC had said he couldn't drive at all. Now Tony was beginning to think that maybe the boy just wanted to run him off the road. In the state he was in, Tony could do little to stop him and probably wouldn't fight either. He was more than willing to die, if it would save JC.

"I thought you couldn't drive," he finally said, hoping for a good answer.

"Mom doesn't know," he answered, "I got my license several months ago, okay?"

Tony nodded as he stared out the window, the lights of other cars blurring as they drove.

"Why did you do it?" Tony asked.

"Do what?" Darren replied, staring at him through the rearview mirror.

"Help me," Tony clarified. "You could have left me, gone with your mom. Why would you bother helping me? You hate me."

Darren let out a sigh. "I do hate you, Stark," he admitted freely, "but for whatever reason, my mom likes you. If helping you will keep her happy, then I'll do it."

"What happened to hating her, too?"

Darren let out another sigh, this time weaker. "I didn't hate her," he said, his grip on the wheel tightening, "I just…I hated her lying to me. I deserved to know the truth about my father."

"Did you ever consider that maybe she didn't want you thinking of your father as coward while you grew up? Or feeling sorry for her for taking the guilt of what was out of her hands?" he said.

"My father was a coward," Darren said through gritted teeth. "I read the reports from the officers. It wasn't easy getting to them, but I read them. He ran against direct orders. He abandoned mom and let her watch him die. What else would you call it?"

Tony watched him, the boy's eyes beginning to fill with angry tears. They had already turned on to the road leading up to his house which rarely saw any traffic.

"Kid, pull over," he said, pulling himself up.

"What?" Darren said, staring at him oddly.

"You heard me. Pull over for a sec," he repeated.

Darren did as told, staring at Tony like he had lost his mind for a moment. When the car finally came to a stop, Tony opened the door and stepped out. He was about to go over and make Darren got out as well, but his legs were still weak and sent him to the ground. Tony cursed as he landed with a thud and propped himself against the side of the car. Darren quickly got out of the car and went to Tony.

"What exactly are you trying to do?" Darren asked as he helped Tony to his knees.

"The falling to the ground part was not part of the plan," he groaned, feeling every bruise flare up. Darren just shook his head and smirked at him.

Tony looked at him with sympathy before wrapping his arms around the boy's shoulders. Darren tensed, probably still wondering why he was hugging him.

"Tony, why are you hugging me?" he asked awkwardly.

Tony chuckled to himself. "You really are your mother's son, aren't you?"

"I don't-"

"Neither of you can just take a friendly hug with question," he said. "Your father wasn't acting out of cowardice. He wanted to make it home for you, Darren. He never meant for this happen," Tony explained softly.

"No," Darren said, his voice beginning to waver as he tried to push Tony away, "no, how could you even know why he ran?"

Tony held him tighter, refusing to let him get away so easily. "Your mother told me. I was there with her when she was screaming. She told me about that day. His intentions were good. He just…just couldn't show it the way he wanted," Tony said.

Darren stopped struggling and slumped against Tony, quiet sobs beginning to wrack his body. Tony held the boy close, knowing the kind of pain he felt. Tony had never felt much love for his own father, but he was slowly learning that maybe, just maybe, in his own strange way, his father had loved him. He wasn't sure, but that's the only thing he could think of, for now.

Darren hesitantly wrapped his arms around Tony, causing him to grimace as every bruise on his body was agitated by the movement. He didn't hide it very well since Darren quickly pulled away to look at his contorted face.

"What's wrong? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," he groaned, "Let's just get home now. I need ice."

With that Darren helped him back into the car and drove the rest of the way home.

"Hey, Darren, let me give you a bit of advice," Tony said as they drove.

"Yeah?"

"Next time you want to hide that you've gotten your license from your mother, first, don't take her car to the one place that she's going to be. Second, don't let the woman with ear piece see you," he said, a wide grin on his face.

Darren began to laugh with him as he said, "Pepper told her, didn't she?"

"Yep, and just in case you didn't get the message, your ass is hers as soon as she's out of the hospital."

"I figured she'd say that. I guess it was going to happen sooner or later," Darren said as he pulled into the garage. He helped Tony out of the car and got him over to the couch.

"Thanks, Darren. Now, get to the hospital. Your mother needs you now more than I do," he said, shooing him away.

"Are you sure you'll be all right?"

"Yeah, I'm just gonna get out of this suit, and then I'll be right there," he said, grabbing a screwdriver from the table and went to work on what was left of his armor.

"No, you're staying here and getting some rest. You're going to need it, if you're going to be able to explain to the press tomorrow what just happened."

Tony looked up at him, not sure whether he wanted to be irritated or not. "Last time I checked, I was the adult here. When did this change?"

"Between you and me, I have more maturity. That kinda makes me the elder," Darren pointed out.

"You ever tried pulling that one on your mother?" he challenged.

"Am I still standing here?"

Tony chuckled at him knowing JC would have knocked Darren about the ears if he had said that to her.

"Fine, I'll stay. Now, get to the hospital," he repeated.

Darren nodded his agreement and turned back to the car. Tony went about unscrewing the leg armor when Darren turned back.

"Thank you, Tony," he said.

Tony looked up, surprise on his face. "For what?" he asked.

"For trying to save her," he clarified, "I know you did what you could."

Tony looked at him, a silent acknowledgement passing between them. Tony knew that he had finally made some head way with boy. Now if he could just save JC, it would all be worth it.

* * *

**AN: Woo hoo for updates! Just trying to get this one finished so I can get back to my other stories again and finish them up. Again, sorry for this one being so long. There was just no good stopping spot. Hope you guys enjoyed it, because I was up until 3am working on this! Anyways, let me know what you think. Your reviews make my world go around, and don't forget to tell me any ideas you may have for the sequal.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

I am Iron Man. Those words had brought the onslaught of reporters that now crowded outside the hospital, waiting for any response from Tony or JC and her family. As Tony stared down at the sharks he couldn't help but feel sorry for Darren. It would be almost impossible for him to go anywhere now with this mob. JC was in no condition to even think of moving. He looked back to the hospital bed, wires and tubes hooked to her, her arm in a sling, a neck brace and crown of bandages completed her ensemble as she slept. She had yet to awaken from last night. Tony hoped that her unconsciousness was nothing to be worried about. The doctors had assured him that she had not gone into a coma, but he had hoped she would have regained consciousness by now.

He looked down to Darren, who had fallen asleep at her bedside, and touched his shoulder. He stirred a bit before waking fully and looked up at him.

"Hey, kid," he greeted.

Darren rubbed the sleep from his eyes and stretched out his arms. "How long was I out?" he asked.

"A few hours," Tony answered, "You haven't moved since I got here this afternoon."

"How did the Press conference go?" he asked as he stood and stretched his legs.

"Come see for yourself," Tony said, pointing out the window.

Darren walked over to the window to view the ever growing horde. "Damn, Stark, what did you say to get their pants in a wad?"

"The truth," he answered.

Darren looked at him with a surprised face before looking back at the crowd. "Well I never thought I'd see the day when Tony Stark told the truth. What snazzy name did they give you?" he teased.

"Iron Man, which is technically wrong but whatever. It's not like it really matters at this point," he huffed.

"Normally I'd say give them a week to find something else to chase, but I don't think that's gonna happen. You realize that the rest of the psychos in the world are gonna try to take it from you or try to build one of their own. You got a plan for them?"

"Well," Tony said as he leaned against the wall, "to take a page from your mom's book, I'm gonna play by ear and see what happens."

Darren smirked at him and shook his head. "I'm gonna go get a soda from the cafeteria. You want anything?" he offered.

"No, thanks," Tony replied, "Take Happy with you. There's no telling how many of those reporters are waiting for you down there."

Darren nodded and left the room, shutting the door behind him. With Tony left alone in the room he took the chair by JC and took her hand in his.

"JC," he said, not even sure she could hear him, "I know you probably can't hear a word I'm saying. I heard a doctor once say people can hear you talking while they sleep. I don't know if that's true, but if you can, you have to know the truth." He paused, hesitant to say what he needed to. "JC, I l-" He stopped when he heard the door open. He turned to see the doctor standing there.

"Mr. Stark," he said.

"Yes?"

"Where's the son?" he asked when he noticed the boy was no longer there.

"He went down to the cafeteria. Why? Is something wrong?" Tony asked, standing up.

"This is rather important," the doctor said, a level seriousness in his voice that had not been there the last time Tony had spoken with him.

"Yes, what is it?" Tony pressed.

"As you already know, Ms. Alwin has sustained a great deal of trauma to her head," the doctor explained.

"Yeah, what about it? Is she okay?"

"It is normal in such a case as hers for there to be some memory loss from the incident. In her specific case, I'm afraid this memory loss may be permanent."

"I don't think she will mind terribly if she never remembers what happened last night," Tony said. Why was he bothering him with this? He already figured there would be memory loss. That was normal in trauma cases. Even Tony knew that. She was lucky to have lived and the doctor was worried about minor memory loss.

"No, Mr. Stark, you don't seem to understand. It's more than that." Tony looked him in the eye and waited for him to continue. "Throughout her stay here she has come in and out of consciousness. For what little time she was coherent, we were able to ask her several routine questions. Her last memory she can recall is being in a desert in Afghanistan yelling at you. Does any of this sound familiar?"

Tony looked away and thought for a moment. They had been in that hell hole for three months. During that time she had yelled at him several times, but the last time he remembered her yelling at him while they were out in the desert was at the weapons demonstration. That was when it hit him. If what the doctor said was true, the past four months were gone for her.

"Let me get this straight. You're telling me that the last thing she remembers is when we were being fired on four months ago. Is that what you're trying to tell me?"

"I am sorry, Mr. Stark, but I'm afraid I am."

"And you're also telling me that this memory loss will be permanent. She won't remember anything that we went through out there?"

"Some of the memories may resurface, but it's rarely seen with damage as severe as this. I am sorry, Mr. Stark," the doctor said and turned to leave. "Would you like to tell her son, or would you like me to?"

"I'll take care of it, Doc," he said and went back to JC's side.

Tony didn't even know what he could say to Darren. JC would never remember how far they had come as friends. She would wake and immediately start cursing his name, if she saw him. She'd never believe that she worked for him and had even kissed him. There's was nothing he could possibly say that would ever convince her. She would just assume he was still the same man who had tried to rape her, the man she had tried to kill.

He took her hand in his again and brought it to his lips. He wished more than anything to be able to feel her lips against his one last time, but he knew that would be asking too much.

"JC, you may hate me from this day forward. I don't care. As long as you're alive, that's all that matters. Just…don't forget me. No matter what happens, never forget." With that he let her go and stood up making his way toward the door. With a heavy heart, he turned away and stepped outside the room, composing himself as Darren and Happy came back down the hall.

"Hey, Tony, where are you going?" Darren asked as he neared.

"I'm going home. Come on, Happy," he said, motioning the driver to follow.

"What? What do you mean you're going home? Why aren't you staying?" Darren questioned as he followed them down the hall.

"My business is done here. There's no need for me to be here anymore," he said coldly. He didn't want to say those words, but he knew he had to, even if it meant earning Darren's hatred again.

"Wait just a second," Darren said, planting himself in front of Tony. "You're just walking out? Just like that? Why? She could wake up any second and you don't want to be there. Did I miss something?"

"Listen, kid," Tony said, looking him in the eye, "you're mother may wake up any minute, and when she does, she will want nothing to do with me. You are not going to tell her any different than what she believes has happened. Are we clear?"

"I don't understand. What the hell are you talking about?"

"You'll find out soon enough. See you around, kid. It was nice knowing you," Tony said and pushed past him, putting on his sunglasses.

"What the hell Stark?" Darren called after him, not caring that people were starting to stare. "I thought you were a better man than this. Fine, then, just walk away, you self-righteous son of a bitch."

His words cut through him like a hot knife, but Tony knew this was how it had to be. He would not force JC to remember. It was better this way. He would not be the cause of any more pain in her life. He refused to turn Darren into an orphan. With the kind of smarts he had, without parents, he would turn into another Tony Stark. That was the last thing the world needed. As Happy drove him home, Tony could feel his emotional strain at the breaking point. He knew he would not last for much longer. He needed to get home. He needed to be alone.

* * *

After two weeks in the hospital, JC released herself, ready to finally go home. Sure, they had said she should stay for awhile longer, but she had no desire to lay in a bed in a room the reeked of sanitizer for another day. With the neck brace and head bandages gone, all she had to do was keep her arm in the sling and go to regular physical therapy to ensure it healed properly. She knew Darren wouldn't lie to her, but she found it hard to believe that she had suffered so many injuries during the attack on the convoy. She remember yelling at Stark to get down as a mortar exploded, but she didn't remember hitting her head or dislocating her shoulder. She figured that she must have done both during the explosion and just had temporary amnesia from the trauma.

Either way, she supposed it didn't matter so much. She was home with her son and far away from Tony Stark. Life would just go back to normal. With a short taxi ride from the hospital to her house, JC was finally able to feel relaxed for the first time in a long while. But even so, she couldn't help but feel something was missing. Was it something in the house? No, everything looked the way it had when she left. It was a bit more disorganized, but Darren was not known for his cleanliness, so she didn't think too much of it. So what was it?

She managed to push it aside for the moment and went about trying to put her house back in order. As the day dragged on, the nagging feeling only continued to get worse. What was she forgetting?

As she tried to sleep that night she couldn't find a comfortable position. She was so used to sleeping on her right side, but that was out of the question with her arm in a sling, and the left side just didn't feel right. She heaved a sigh as she rolled on to her back and stared at the ceiling. She stared and stared until her vision slowly blurred and she fell into a restless sleep.

_Visions of hulking robots and shining gold and red humanoids flashed through her mind. There were explosions, loud sparks as she could feel the breath from her lungs rush out as if that hulk had sat on her. She saw faces, faces of old, lecherous men with wandering hands and eyes, of younger, still lecherous Middle Eastern men that pinned her to walls of earth with their breath hot and malodorous on her neck._

_More explosions rattled the earth as cars flew by and helicopters whirred over head. There was a mansion that piece by piece seemed to be broken apart by that gold and red form. Whether it was falling through the roof or slamming against the ceiling, the figure kept hurting itself._

_Now the hulk was back, crushing the gold and red figure. She found herself screaming at it, yelling for it to release its hold on the figure, but it did not listen. It laughed at her, mocked her. Then it dropped the figure where it lay motionless on the ground. Was it dead? She felt the urge to rush to its side when strong arms came around, and a voice, deep and soothing in her ear told her it was all right, that she was safe._

_She felt safe in those arms. Those arms felt familiar. She relaxed into them as the horrid images melted away, leaving her and this mystery man alone in the remaining darkness._

"_Who are you?" she asked tentatively. _

"_Never forget," he whispered lovingly._

"_What does that mean? Never forget what? Who are you?" she asked again and turned to catch a glimpse of the face of Tony Stark, desperation in his eyes. His face slowly contorted into a horrid nightmare as his form enlarged and threatened to swallow her. _

"_No!"_

JC shot up in her bed, cold sweat covering her body. What had it all meant? It was all a blur, but she had been in his arms. And what was that warning? Never forget? Never forget what? She had never forgotten what he had done to her, but there had to be something else. But what? That nagging feeling was back.

A moment later Darren came through the door, a worried look on his face.

"Are you all right, mom? You sounded like you were having a nightmare," he said.

"I'm fine. Just go back to bed, okay?" she said.

"Was it that dream again?" he asked, referring to her nightmare of her husband's death. Darren had already told her that he had known about the details of his father's death for some time now, but had never told her. She was relieved now that he knew but still worried about him as well. The one man he supposedly looked up to all those years was little more than a shadow now. Now who was he to look to?

"No, not that one," she assured him. "It was something very different. I could hardly tell you what it was about. It was all a blur," she said as she rubbed her temple.

"Why don't I make you something to drink," he offered, "It'll help you get back to sleep."

She conceded and followed him to the kitchen where he proceeded to make her some hot chocolate. As she waited for him to finish, she walked about the house until she came to her studio. She had left so many projects unfinished, she didn't know how she was ever going to finish them all. As she looked over the pots, one of them stood out among the others. She remembered having only five pots when she left. So what was a sixth one doing on the table.

Darren came in a short time later with her hot chocolate as she continued to stare at it.

"Darren, do you remember if I started a pot before I left?" she asked.

"Not really, but I never really kept track of everything you did," he said, a slight change in his tone that would have gone unnoticed by others, but she recognized it. He was lying.

For now, she let it go as she continued to stare at it. She wasn't sure what was so different about it. It had similar indentations on it as the other pots from the needle she was using during her experimentation. She was so close to getting the pots to a quality of being able to record sound like a vinyl record. She picked it up and looked at the bottom, searching for her signature and date that she always put on finished pieces. There was none. She looked back to Darren who started to look a bit nervous though he hid it quite well.

She took the pot and put it on the turntable she was using to test the pots and placed the needle at the top. She turned on the machine and waited several seconds to see what would come of it. After a short while, music began to play through the speakers. This was definitely new to her. She didn't remember having a working pot. Had Darren made it? No, he couldn't have. He was terrible with the turn table. She had watched him try once.

"That's so odd," she said and was about to turn it off when new voices came over the speakers. She recognized hers, but there was one voice that she had not expected. Tony Stark had been in her house and she had been yelling at him over some incomplete reactor. Her head began to throb and she put one hand to her temple.

None of it made sense. When was he in her house? When was she yelling at him? She knew that her lungs had been damaged during the explosion and that Stark had been responsible for the technology that kept her alive, but had never been here. Or had he? None of this made sense.

She barely noticed as she dropped her cup. Images flashed that only added to the confusion. There was pain, excruciating pain in her chest from the barbs that had pierced her lungs. There was darkness, gun shots, screaming. She felt the heat of the desert all of over again, saw the explosions in the mountains, saw as helicopters zoomed overhead. Every memory she never knew she had came flooding back in a tidal wave before exploding in her mind.

Everything suddenly became clear. The injuries, her dreams, Darren's reluctance, it all made sense. The only thing missing was one question.

"Why?" she asked, turning to Darren.

"Mom, are you okay?"

"Why did you lie to me?" she repeated.

"What are you talking about?" he questioned, looking at her confused.

"Why didn't you tell me everything? Why did you leave out three months of my life?"

His face fell as his fingers twiddled with the seam of his pajama pants.

"I'm waiting for an answer," she pressed, her features hardened.

"I didn't tell you, because," he paused, unsure whether to answer before saying, "because I was told not to."

"Who told you this?" she asked, her voice softening.

"Tony Stark," he answered meekly, still staring at his feet.

JC was aghast. How could he have done this? Yes, some of the memories were still vague, but several of them were very clear. He had kissed her, held her when she was scared. If he cared so much, why would he have simply left her?

"Why would he do this?" she wondered, "And why would you consider doing what he said? You hate him."

"I used to hate him, but, lately, I've been thinking otherwise." She waited for him to continue. "He came to the hospital the day after the fight. I didn't understand why he just walked out. He never said anything about the amnesia. He just…left. When you came around, I kinda understood," he explained.

"What are you talking about?"

"When you didn't remember anything, it was like starting over again. I don't know if he hoped for this or not, but it was like I had finally gotten you back. So, just this once, I did what he asked."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her world was turning on end before her eyes. One minute she thought she hated Tony Stark and that her son would rather punch the man than listen to him. Now she learned that not only had they tried to have some sort of a relationship, but Darren was starting to like him. At least that's what she thought. She was sure that somewhere deep down, he still disliked Stark. Even so, she couldn't help but feel a bit of pride for the boy. Though she wished he had told her the truth, she could understand the reasoning behind the decision. It wasn't great reasoning, but for him, it was definitely a step up.

She walked to him and pulled him into a hug. He gently returned it, still wary of her injuries. As she pulled away she looked him over.

"What happened to my little boy? He's been replaced by this man," she said as a few tears escaped her eyes.

"Mom," he said with a smile, "I'm always going to be your little boy."

With another smile she pulled him back into the hug and kissed his forehead. She pulled away and ruffled his hair, lightening the mood.

"I need to go," she said as she realized what she needed to do and head back upstairs to her room, son in tow.

"Go? Go where?"

"I'm going to give Stark a piece of my mind," she said as she began to change into regular clothes, which was still quite the struggle.

"Right now? It's almost two in the morning," he pointed out.

"You honestly think the man will be asleep? This is Tony Stark we're talking about."

"And if he is miraculously sleeping, what are you going to do then? Drag him out by his ears?"

"If need be," she said as she pulled on a jacket put her arm back in its sling.

Darren just stared at her in disbelief. She figured she wouldn't have to do anything drastic to get his attention, but she was not about to wait another second before she confronted him. He was just going to have to deal with it.

"I shouldn't be gone for very long, but before I go, I forgot to mention something to you," she said as she found her keys.

"What's that?" he asked.

"You're grounded until you're through with college."

"What?" he exclaimed, "What for?"

"The driving illegally and trying to get yourself killed at Stark Industries," she explained.

"Um, Mom, I forgot to tell you this, but I got my license awhile back," he said nervously.

"Oh," she said surprised. "Okay then. You're still grounded for going to the fight. The getting the license behind my back will just be bonus time. Love you, sweetie," she said with a smile and ran out the door.

The half hour drive out to Tony's mansion seemed to race by as she thought over what she would say to him. She still hadn't decided whether or not she was completely angry with him. She wanted to yell at him for simply leaving her the way he had, but part of her also wanted to hear his side. As she pulled into the driveway she noticed that most of the lights were still on. She pulled to a stop in front of the garage door and was about to go to the front door when she noticed a garage opener on the console that did not belong to her house. Some of her memories were still hazy, but she figured that the device must be for this house. She pressed the button and sure enough, the door lifted and granted her access.

Leaving her car where it was, she walked down the entrance of the garage and closed the door behind her. What she saw was beyond her. The entire workshop looked like an atomic bomb had gone off. Tools were strewn about the floor and work tables, car parts and even several pieces of the armor littered the floor along with a plethora of green beer bottles around the couch. She picked up one of the empty and smelled the opening. It was stale. From the lingering aroma, all of the bottles must have been at least two days old. That at least told her he hadn't gotten drunk that night in his basement. That didn't mean the rest of the house didn't look like this. She hoped not.

She walked to the door and noticed that all the glass shards were gone and the doors replaced. She half expected that mess to still be there, but with pepper still around, she knew there was bound to be a certain level of order in the house. Thankful that no security code was needed to go through the door, because she knew she probably wouldn't have remembered it, she went through the door and headed up to the main level where she had seen all the lights.

As she ascended the stairs she could hear the sound of very off key, drunken singing that sounded like Tony.

"Tony Shtark makes you feel. He's a cool exec with a heart of shteel. As Iron Man, all jets ablaze. He's fighting and shmiting with repulsor rays! Amazing armor! That's Iron Man! A blazing power! That's Iron Man! Yeah..."

She heard him laugh at himself before he took a loud gulp of whatever he was drinking and slammed the glass down.

"I am Iron Man, the world's best superhero," he said half heartedly to himself as he scoffed.

As she rounded the corner she took in the sight of the disheveled living room and kitchen area. It didn't look as horrible as the garage, but it still looked awful. She found Tony standing at the kitchen bar, back to her, wearing a navy blue robe that looked like it was the only thing he had been wearing for several days from the horrid wrinkles that were probably now permanently set in.

"Tony?" she said warily, not sure of how cognitive he really was.

"Tony Stark isn't here right now," he said without turning, twirling the glass in his hand in circles on the counter. "Please leave a message. He won't be getting in touch with you anytime soon," he said, laughing at his own joke.

Now she was mad.

"Anthony Edward Stark."

* * *

It had been quite some time since he had heard his name in that tone. Only his mother had ever said his full name in that tone before, and that's what she reminded him of. What was she doing here? How had she gotten in? Jarvis? Probably.

_Note to self: reprogram Jarvis,_ he thought to himself as he stared down at his reflection in the granite. Even on the dark stone he could see his eyes were bloodshot and tired. He hadn't wanted to face her now, not like this. Why would she even want to be here at such an hour? Knowing he could not fight the inevitable he turned and faced her. Her features were hardened in a stern glare as she looked him up and down.

"Can I help you, Miss Alwin?" he asked tersely. He didn't want her here. Well, he did, but not like this. Not when he was half drunk and her memory gone. He knew it was a fight just waiting to happen.

"Cut the crap, Stark. You and I both know why I'm here," she scowled.

"You're going to have to enlighten me on that one," he said, turning back to his drink, "I'm not a mind reader."

"You left me in a hospital thinking that four months of my life never happened," she clarified, "Did you think I wouldn't remember?"

He froze. She had managed to remember. He hadn't expected that. He knew he should have. This was JC he was talking about. She had cheated death enough times to be able to pull off something like this. Still, he hadn't expected a confrontation quite like this. He pushed the half full glass into the sink and watched as the last of the scotch that had been in it went down the drain. He then turned back to JC, an exasperated look on his face.

"What did you want me to do?" he asked.

"You know, after everything that we went through in that cave and what happened with Stane, I thought you would have had the decency to stay around, tell me the truth. But you just walked out, no explanation. Did you want us to hate you again?" she challenged.

"No," he said softly.

"Did you not want me around anymore?"

"No," he repeated.

"Then what? You just stopped caring?"

"I did it, because I care!" he exclaimed, silencing for a moment. "I wouldn't have done it, if I didn't care," he said more calmly.

"I don't understand," she said approaching him.

"Japan, two times in Afghanistan, and two times here. That's how many times you have nearly died trying to protect me. I was not about to have the guilt of taking you away from your son permanently on my conscience. I couldn't bear it. I thought it would be better, if I wasn't in the picture anymore. You two could just move on like nothing had happened, and we would all get back to normal," he explained.

"Tony," she said softly, putting a hand to his face, "if it weren't for you, I wouldn't still be here."

He took her hand and removed it, holding it in his as he tried to hold back his emotions.

"You wouldn't be hurt, if it weren't for me. All I've done is nearly get you killed. I almost succeeded this time. I wasn't about to let it happen again."

"Stane did this, not you," she said as she tried to look in his eyes, which he averted. "Raza and his men were responsible for what happened in the desert, not you. The terrorists in Japan fired the guns, not you. If there's anything you've done for me, it's giving me my life back."

He looked down at her, tears welling up in her eyes. Despite what she said, he couldn't bring himself to believe it.

"They attacked you, because of me. I will not have your death on my hands."

"You won't, Tony. I'm still here, aren't I?" she said, trying to compose herself.

Tony looked away, his stress getting to the breaking point. The past two weeks had been hard enough without this. He remembered that day when he came home from the hospital. He locked himself up in his room for awhile and vented. His room was still in shambles from his rampage. Even then, his anger and sadness still consumed. He went from his room to the basement, and anything that stood in his way met a terrible fate either smashed on the floor or thrown about. After all of his energy was gone he had curled up and finally, after so many years, he cried. He cried until his eyes were red and every tear was gone and cried some more. Even then, the pain still would not go away. Now it was back, that pain, the urge to cry all over again. But he couldn't do that, not in front of her. She was strong, and he wanted to be strong for her. He could handle the pain. He was Tony Stark, Iron Man. He was supposed to be invincible.

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed the heel of her, his eyes clenched closed holding back the tears he wanted to shed. She moved her hand to his cheek, his hand holding it there. Only when he was sure the tears would not fall did he open his eyes and stare at her. Her features had softened and looked sympathetic for him.

"I can't lose you, JC. I love you," he admitted. For two weeks he had been waiting to say those words, perhaps even longer.

She brought her hand around to the back of his neck and pulled him down into a soft kiss. He kissed back ever so gently, savoring every moment of her touch, of her taste. As he kissed her, he lost what little control he had and let several tears escape. He reached around and put one hand behind her head, raking his fingers through her hair as he deepened the kiss. He reached around with his other arm and wrapped it around her body, pulling her closer. As he did, she winced and groaned in pain. He immediately pulled away and released her.

"I can't, I can't do this. I can't hurt you," he said, averting his gaze. She looked at him sympathetically and put a hand to his chin, turning his to look at her.

"It won't last forever," she said softly. "The pain will go away. I love you, too, Tony."

He looked at her and smiled his first genuine smile since he had left her. He brought her back gently for another kiss before resting his forehead against hers.

"Promise you'll never do that again," she asked.

"I promise. I'll never leave you again. I love you, JC."

**THE END**

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AN: Well, as you can see, this is the end. It's been a long road that started one year ago, and I am so happy that we finally made it to the end. I know alot of people were ready to strangle me after trying to kill off JC. :) Aren't you glad she made it to the end? Anyways, don't forget to leave me a review. They really make my world go round. There will be a sequal due to the amount of interest there has been, but I will not start on it until I have finished one of my other stories since there people on there that want to strangle me just as much for lack of updates. I still have alot to plan before I can even really write the first chapter, so if you have any ideas, let me know. See ya guys at the sequal! And don't forget to review! And again, I don't know why it did it, but it forced the chapter heading and the 'The End' to the left. DOn't know why. Oh well.


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